Two highly acclaimed Italian chefs, one in London and the other in Chicago, have each crafted an impressive cookbook well worth your time and money.

Money is mentioned because "Made in Italy: Food & Stories" by Giorgio Locatelli (Ecco, $60) is pricey and a weighty 624 pages. Still, it is about 3 cents per page less than "Fantastico!: Little Italian Plates and Antipasti From Rick Tramonto's Kitchen" by Rick Tramonto with Mary Goodbody (Broadway, $35).

The sheer size of "Made in Italy" is reminiscent of one of the bibles of Italian cooking, Luigi Carnacina's "Great Italian Cooking," published in English in 1968.

However, what Locatelli brings to the table in addition to an impressive array of traditional dishes is a series of essays on the foods of Italy, their proper preparation, and his life as a chef, beginning at the family's Michelin-star restaurant in northern Italy.

His restaurant in London has earned the same accolade.

While the book appears daunting, the recipes are not necessarily so.

Many are simple classics that are easily duplicated. Others, such as Fried Stuffed Sardines, require some finesse, but the author has included colour photographs to show how the dish should be prepared.

Locatelli begins with a variety of starters, then runs through soups, risotto dishes, pasta, of course, fish, meat and more than three dozen desserts. In most cases, the preparation is for four persons.

"Made in Italy" deserves to be on every cook's shelf. It also would make a lovely gift this holiday season for that special cook in your life.

Raised in a large Italian family in Rochester, New York, the author of "Fantastico!" is the proprietor of a four-star restaurant in Chicago.

This self-taught chef explores This self-taught chef explores a wide variety of small plates "designed to offer old, authentic flavours and new, exciting ones."

Many are familiar with crostini — small toasts with fresh and flavorful toppings — and antipasti, served before the pasta dish. But Tramonto also introduces readers to the likes of assagio, crudo, bocconcini and cicchetti. All are tasty morsels to be enjoyed prior to the main meal — at a cocktail party, for instance. In the main, they are quick and easy to prepare, with the possible exception of the antipasto dishes. If you are turned off by the sight of baby octopus, skip over the color photograph on page 198.

"Fantastico!" is nicely designed and easy to use. The author has included in each chapter tips on wine to be served and a list of sources for hard-to-find ingredients. Creative cooks will enjoy this presentation.

The onions for this salad may be prepared a day ahead, which improves the flavor. "It is important that they be quite soft, not crunchy," says the author of "Made in Italy."

Green Bean Salad with Roasted Red Onion and Parmesan

2 large red onions

1 ½ cups red wine vinegar

1 tablespoon sugar

? cup plus 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

Salt and pepper

8 to 9 ounces fine green beans

2 tablespoons freshly grated parmesan, plus extra for shavings

3 tablespoons shallot vinaigrette (see below)

Small bunch of chives, chopped

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Leave their skins on and wrap the onions in foil and bake in the oven for about 1 hour, until soft.

While the onions are cooking, put the vinegar into a small pan and boil until reduced by about ?. Remove from the heat, stir in the sugar until dissolved, then stir in the extra-virgin olive oil to make a vinaigrette.

When the onions are cooked, unwrap them and peel off the skin. While they are still warm, cut them in half, separate the layers and season with salt and pepper, then put them into the vinaigrette.

Blanch the green beans in plenty of boiling salted water for about 5 minutes, then drain. Place in a bowl, sprinkle with the grated parmesan and season with salt and pepper. Toss with the shallot vinaigrette and sprinkle the chives over.

Arrange the onion layers on your serving plates. Place the beans on top and shave some more parmesan on top.

Makes 4 servings.

Shallot Vinaigrette

2 banana shallots or 4 ordinary shallots

Salt and pepper

? cup red wine vinegar

? cup extra-virgin olive oil

Finely chop shallots, then put them in a bowl and season with salt and pepper.

Add the vinegar and leave to stand for 30 minutes.

Whisk in the oil and use right away.

Makes about 1 cup.

This Venetian-style sandwich is a tasty treat from "Fantastico!"

Shrimp Salad Cicchetti

½ pound peeled, cooked shrimp, diced (about 2 cups)

½ cup homemade or store-bought mayonnaise

¼ cup finely diced celery

2 tablespoons finely diced red onion

½ tablespoon fresh lemon juice

1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh tarragon

1 teaspoon grated lemon zest

½ teaspoon cayenne

Kosher salt and cracked black pepper

4 (3- to 4-inch-long) crusty Italian rolls or lengths of baguette

¼ cup chiffonade (finely shredded) romaine lettuce

In a bowl, mix the shrimp, mayonnaise, celery, onion, lemon juice, mustard, parsley, tarragon, lemon zest and cayenne. Season to taste with salt and black pepper.

Split the rolls horizontally. Mound 2 to 3 tablespoons of the shrimp mixture on the bottom half of each roll. Top with romaine and the other half of each roll. Cut the sandwiches in half.

Wrap each sandwich tightly with wax paper. They are messy and the waxed paper will make them easier to serve and to eat. Serve at room temperature.

Makes 4 servings