Local mama wins search for Italian food ambassador

The wisdom of Italian Mamas is recognised throughout the world and who better to pass on this knowledge to the nation than the women themselves. Giovanni Rana has recently undertaken a nationwide search to find a team of women who represent the epitome of Italian mamas.

Monica Costa from Putney in London and Daniela Calastri from Woodford, Essex have fought off stiff competition to be crowned the first members of the official Giovanni Rana mamas Panel.

They will now proudly fly the flag for Italian cooking throughout the UK and pass on the secrets of their mouth watering home-cooked cuisine. Giovanni Rana held this nationwide competition to put together a panel of Italian mamas who can help us Brits embrace the true taste of Italy. Monica (38 yrs) and Daniela (43 yrs) are two of the team chosen to bring true Italian family traditions and delicious meals to the UK.

Monica’s family is originally from Faenza, Ravenna and she has one little boy aged 2 years, who likes to lend a helping hand in the kitchen already. The judges at Giovanni Rana, Italy’s number one fresh pasta brand, felt that Monica embodies the spirit of Italy; from her relaxed persona to her passion for family and good food they felt she was a true Italian Mama.

Daniela’s’ family is originally from Milan in Lombardia and she has three children aged 8 years, 5 years and 20 months who all like to help her prepare the evening meals. Daniela is a true glamorous Italian Mama, managing to juggle running her busy household while working full time.

Both ladies will now be taken on a trip to Verona, the home of Giovanni Rana, to meet Signor Rana himself and they are already sharing a few well kept culinary secrets to help create exciting new recipes for the Giovanni Rana brand.

Mama Monica says; “I’m so excited to be one of the Giovanni Rana Mama’s. My mother used to prepare Giovanni Rana for me as a child, so it evokes such warm memories for me and I can’t wait to start passing on my tips to the nation. I am a real believer that the family that eats together stays together, and I want to encourage more families to make time to enjoy their meals. I’m really looking forward to sharing some of those little secrets that have been passed down through generations of my family, the ones that really give an authentic taste of Italy to a meal.”

Signor Rana first sought the advice of Italian housewives in learning the craft of the perfect tortellini almost half a century ago and, since then, has been seen as a national treasure among Italian families. With the Giovanni Rana Mamas Panel in the UK, Signor Rana hopes to bring out the Italian cook in all of us, teaching us to experiment with flavours and adopt the Italian sense of adventure when cooking.

Giovanni Rana’s range of premium fresh filled pastas, priced £1.99 for a 250g pack, are available from Sainsbury’s, Asda and Morrisons.