My name is "Mamma Ria"
My name is Maria Giuseppa Matera and you all know me as "Mamma Ria", an Italian mother and grandmother with children and grandchildren around the World. I was born in Gravina di Puglia,in Puglia region, Southern Italy and since I was a little girl I learned to help my grandmother with the chores of the house and with the kitchen.I am the forth of seven children and at the age
of twelve I moved with my whole family to Monopoli, a little seaside town close to Polignano a Mare.
Mine was a large family with my mother Lina and my loving father Michele always busy try to make things working out, I've learnt how to take care of the youngest brothers and sisters quickly but always find the time for my passion:being a singer!
How lucky I am!
In the 70's I met the love of my life, Michelangelo Carbotti and got married in 1978 and moved to Martina Franca (my husband home town) where we still live after 40 years of marriage! In the 1979 I was blessed with my first born Maria Pia, the eldest and the only girl among all 4 sons: Andrea, 1980,Michele, 1983 and lastly Angelo,1988 complete the picture!
I've sacrificed all my passion and my job to grew up my big family and being a loving mother for my kids and I think I did a great job and now I spend my life feeling blessed for all the love I've given as a mother and received for being also as a grandmother of six:William,Michelangelo Jr.,Sonia,Dario,Erika and the last Carbotti's memeber Federico born in December 2019!
Most of my kids (they are men now, but I always see them as little ones!) live and work abroad and everytime I visit them or they come to Puglia for vacation with their families, they always ask me to cook food they are not able to enjoy abroad:easy and simple dishes like "ORECCHIETTE CON SUGO FRESCO E CACIORICOTTA" or "PASTA E FAGIOLI" or just a full plate of "POLPETTE E BRACIOLE AL SUGO"!
Yes, I am lucky,becuase I've realized thanks to my sons that what I did for my whole life was not ORDINARY but EXTRAORDINARY! The love and passion can bring you to discover "new dimensions" and mostly that you are never too old to learn or let people fall in love with what you do.
As every good Apulian mother does, I showed love every day by cooking for my family and grandchildren, then for friends and now for all those who want to taste the goodness of a 100% HOMEMADE and HANDMADE Italian and Apulian cuisine!
Favorite everyone!
You are all welcome to my table,joing my family and my life made of passions for simple things but of great value and above all I invite you to rediscover the authenticity of healthy and genuine Italian cuisine sure to make fall in love with Puglia and its signature dishes!