. . . ON THE AMALFI COAST IN SOUTHERN ITALY.
"Eating beautiful fresh seafood in the hot sunshine. I've had some wonderful meals in my time, but at the end of the day, I'd always return to Italy, and probably to Amalfi, where Jools and I spent some of our honeymoon. It's also the part of the world where my great mate Gennaro Contaldo comes from, and they have such a wonderful variety of great chefs and a fantastic amount of delicious fresh food that's pretty unbeatable. Most people know that Italy has been such an inspiration to me over the years, and it continues to be so."
BUT I'M NOT SO . . .
"I'll just have to try to recreate the mood in rainy old Essex - and it does seem to have been showery here for what seems like months. As a family, we escape out there most weekends, to the house that appears in the Jamie at Home series. Jools does the cooking during the week because I'm working, but at the weekends I can get in the kitchen and if I want to get an Italian vibe going, I'll make some fresh pasta and either do a simple dish with some fresh tomatoes and herbs and a bit of olive oil, or at this time of year when there's not much in the garden yet, one of Jools's favourites is rigatoni with tuna, tinned tomatoes, chilli and red onion. Delicious."
In conversation with Marie-Claire Digby
Jamie Oliver has launched a range of food products - sauces, marinades, pestos and seasoning mixes that are on sale in Dunnes Stores, Tesco, Superquinn, Supervalu, Spar, Londis and independents