The Macaroni's in the Basement

A new cookbook with stories about the nonne, a quartet of feisty, determined grandmas who run the world from their kitchens in South Brooklyn in 1947.

A new cookbook with stories about the nonne, a quartet of feisty, determined grandmas who run the world from their kitchens in South Brooklyn in 1947. They are exhaling a post-War sigh of relief -- dancing at block parties, celebrating births and weddings, and marveling at the Coney Island fireworks on Tuesday nights. They share an attitude of seeming nonchalance while working night and day, and a love for anything related to family, faith, and food. It’s their cooking that they are passionate about. Their language is food, their currency is recipes.

Fran Claro is a writer, editor, chef, baker and a long-time recipe archivist and creator. Her writing can be found in The Dream Book: An Anthology of Writings by Italian American Women and ongrandparents.com. She's nonna to 11 grandchildren and she lives in Westchester, NY, where she concocts Italian American feasts for her friends and family.