We've been reading Matthew Fort's book and reminiscing about Summer in the Italian Islands ourselves... Asinara, Favignana and Pianosa – might you be familiar with any of them? They are but three of the few hundred islands which pepper the coast of Italy and are deliciously uncovered in a new book “Summer in the Islands” by Matthew Fort, he of the BBC’s Great British Menu. We have devoured the pages of the book, chronicling Matthew’s journey on his beloved Vespa, Nicoletta. She, we discover, “holds into the corners and is steady on the straight run” as the pair take on a gastronomic, cultural and historical journey meeting wine makers, fisherman, guitarists, caper-farmers , cooks and tenors. This book is positively sun-drenched and will tempt any one in to their own journey of Italian discovery. Meanwhile, one of our favourite discoveries in the pages is this. When Matthew visits Gorgona, which houses a prison, and meets the Commissario, they discuss the availability of alcohol on the island – and that there’s only one ingredient needed. “Alcohol spells trouble”, says the Commissario, “You don’t need grapes or even sugar to make wine. All you need is pasta. Keep cooked pasta in warm water for a few days and it ferments” This is as much a revelation for Matthew, he tells his readers, as it is for us! What will you discover?