The King and Queen celebrate Italian food and fashion

Their Majesties invited a host of well-known faces from the worlds of fashion and food to celebrate Italian culture in the week that their State Visit to Italy and the Holy See this spring was announced.

Guests included Victoria and David Beckham, Donatella Versace, Dame Helen Mirren, Edward Enninful and Stanley Tucci.

Victoria Beckham admired the work of his students, telling him: “The workmanship and the craftsmanship is phenomenal.”

The King made a martini under the tutelage of Italian mixologist Alessandro Palazzi, and, in a speech at the dinner, spoke of slow food and Italy as both being “dear to my heart”. His Majesty said he was “especially pleased” the dinner comes just a few weeks before his State Visit to Italy, adding: “To say that we are looking forward to it would be to engage in a little British understatement…” The King started and ended his speech in Italian.
 

The menu was created by renowned Italian chef Francesco Mazzei and inspired by actor and foodie Stanley Tucci. On the reception menu was rare and pasture salumi, Tuscan-style pate and coppa, Yorkshire pecorino cheese puffs and British vegetables caponata tartelletta.

The dinner menu included Scottish crab panzanella, Westcombe ricotta and Highgrove fine herbs ravioli, Isle of Wight tomato passata, Suffolk red porchetta, pumpkin and sage mash, Tuscan kale and zuppa inglese and biscotti.

Mr Mazzei said: “This is my first time cooking for the King. I’m quite excited about that. It is an Italian menu with British produce, well 99% as the extra virgin olive oil is Italian.”

Created using British ingredients blended with Italian culinary traditions and local flavours, the dishes aimed to embody the principles of slow food.

James Bond-inspired martinis were prepared by Mr Palazzi using flavours of Italy and herbs from Highgrove Gardens.

Mr Palazzi said his recipe for the event was a half measure Sacred English vermouth from Highgate with one part Polish vodka and three parts Gordon’s gin. He said: “The martini is shaken very well and has to be served cold.”

The slow food initiative was launched in 1986 in the small Italian town of Bra when food writer Carlo Petrini took exception to the opening of a McDonald’s in Rome’s Piazza di Spagna, leading to widespread national protests. It promotes the right to good, clean and fair food for all, and strives to preserve traditional and regional cuisine. The King has long been a champion of the philosophy.

The event also promoted ‘slow fashion’, with the King and Queen meeting King’s Foundation’s students and being shown garments demonstrating their sustainable fashion and heritage skills. The slow fashion movement encourages people to buy fewer, higher-quality items that last longer.

The King and Queen are to pay state visits to Italy and the Vatican in early April, during which they will meet Pope Francis at the Vatican and celebrate the Catholic Church’s Pilgrims of Hope Jubilee year.

In Italy, Their Majesties will visit Rome and the north-eastern city of Ravenna, known for its early Christian mosaic artwork. They will also attend the Holy See, the government of the Roman Catholic Church, which is located in the Vatican – the smallest independent state in the world, which is surrounded by Rome and is the residence of the spiritual leadership of the Roman Catholic Church.