Nutritionist-turned-cookbook-author Nancy Segreto said she was “born a foodie.” As a child, she recalls eating artichokes, figs, and broccoli rabe, while her cousins preferred plainer pastas. Now decades later, Segreto released her first cookbook, “Segreto’s Foxfire Cookbook,” chronicling her family’s recipes, passed down from her grandmother.
“My upbringing was always around the big Italian-American extended family dinners,” said Segreto, who grew up in Syosset. She said her family had Sunday dinner, complete with “a big pot of sauce and amazing recipes.”
Segreto said that after her graduation from Syosset High School, her family moved to Stowe, Vt. in 1975, and opened a restaurant. She said Stowe was her family’s favorite ski town, and that her family operated the restaurant from 1975 to 1994. She said close family friends ran it from 1994 until it closed in 2013.
She said the restaurant — which started with just subs and heroes — used her grandmother’s recipes and branched out into other Italian cuisines from the North to the South.
“I just felt sad about losing these recipes, because we’re five generations now since my grandmother… I wanted to hold onto that, pass it down to generations,” she said.
Although she initially set out to create the book as a piece of family history, Segreto said the townspeople of Stowe rallied around it, eager to make recipes from the former restaurant.
“That just kept propelling me,” she said.
Segreto said the book took her about five years to finalize, especially since she made and photographed each recipe throughout the process. Segreto said the recipes are kept as close as possible to the ones that her grandmother made, although her grandmother did not tend to measure closely. She said the process took some trial to find the right ratios of spices.
“I found a new love for the simplicity of marinara sauce…really good quality ingredients. It’s amazing how delicious it is,” she said.
She said in addition to her family’s recipes, the book has anecdotes about the restaurant, as well as diet alternatives and nutrition facts. Segreto is a nutritionist and said she wanted to include substitutes for those who have allergies or food restrictions.
Segreto said she consulted her cousin, Jill Martuscello, who graduated from Middlebury College with a master’s degree in Italian language and culture, throughout the writing process, and included information about Italian-American culture as well.
Segreto said returning to her family’s recipes has been a nostalgic experience.
“There’s definitely a lot of memories with food,” she said.
The book isn’t just a metaphorical homecoming, though. The book was released in June, shortly before Segreto is set to return to Syosset for her 50th high school reunion this October.
“It’s just like I’m coming full circle to where all these recipes started,” she said.
The book is available to purchase online at Amazon.com.
