Don’t Cut The Basil

Mary Kovach learned to make family recipes from her mother and grandmother. As a young girl, Mary loved being in the kitchen tasting the freshly made sauce, smelling the cookies baking in the oven, or waiting for the next taste test. When cooking or baking, Nonna Mary used to ask Mary to sing or whistle. Mary learned later in life that it wasn't to hear her (beautiful?) singing voice, but that Nonna Mary did this to be sure Mary wasn't eating the ingredients! Nonna Mary was an amazing baker.Two favorite memories of Mary's are Sunday family dinners and Christmas Eve. Sunday dinners were a family favorite that her mother carried on for years-fresh sauce cooking all day, fresh Italian bread, homemade meatballs and sausage, different types of pastas... The entire family would come over and sit around the kitchen table for hours. Every Christmas Eve the older generation carried on the tradition of the seven fishes, and there would be a kitchen full of different types of homemade pizzas. We would crowd around the table and enjoy one another's company.
Mary has her Ph.D. from Miami University, MBA from Cleveland State University, and BA from Baldwin Wallace University; she has numerous publications and has earned multiple awards. She is a tenured university professor and also a contributor to In the Limelight and ItalyUSA magazines. Mary is also the owner of Ciao Down Italian Cookies, LLC, a side business she started in honor of her grandmother.
She is a proud member of the Order Sons and Daughters of Italy in America (OSDIA); Mary serves as a co-host on the Facebook series "OSDIA Interviews LIVE" where she had the pleasure of interviewing amazing Italian and Italian American chefs including Lidia Bastianich, Mary Ann Esposito, Ale Gambini, and Cara Di Falco. Additionally, she was asked by Ale Gambini to write a review for her new cookbook. For the Order, she serves in multiple roles nationally, for the Grand Lodge of Ohio, and locally. Additionally, her mother was quoted a number of times in the Cleveland Memories book series, sharing stories of her Italian upbringing.

Don't Cut the Basil is filled with over 25 authentic Italian recipes, pictures, and the stories behind them, spanning five generations.


The authors, three Sicilian cousins (Angela, Corrina, and Mary), are excited to share their family recipes with your family! Their grandmothers and mothers taught them the true Italian way, to cook without measuring and to use their senses to know when the food was ready - always by look, smell, and taste.


This cookbook includes multiple generations of family recipes that are simple and easy to make. Some recipes evolved with each families' taste; therefore, multiple versions are included for you to enjoy. From the traditional pasta sauces to the delicious Italian cookies, these recipes will make your taste buds want more!


Don't Cut the Basil is the perfect cookbook to make mouthwatering Italian food for your family and friends without leaving your home! Mangia!