New Zealand Listener

Massimo Margaria

- Massimo Margaria stars in the RNZB’s production Dancing with Mozart, which tours the country from May 31-July 8.

The Royal New Zealand Ballet dancer was born in Turin and he brought his love of Italian food with him to this country. “The process of how they make the food in Italy is different; the real pizza and how they cook the pasta in the restaurant­s is so good.”

What is one of your favourite childhood food memories? My mother would always cook rice with a kind of cheese for kids; I was in love with that cheese. The rice was like the arborio rice we have here, but we have many different varieties.

Do you make a point of healthy eating? My mother told me to always eat something with good colour during the day. So, I like oranges because they’re really good for your body. I eat veges, too, of course, but I’m not really a fan of them.

What’s your typical breakfast? Most of the time I have eggs with bacon. I have free-range eggs almost every day.

What about lunch? Today I had two slices of pizza – just light ones: four cheeses and a margarita. Normally I would have salad with chicken; I have chicken every day in some form.

And your typical dinner? Italian style. Pasta with pesto or tomato. Carbonara. Matriciana. Anything like that. If I have a show and I need energy but need to be light, I have a salad with chicken. A good mix of protein and healthy food.

What’s your favourite evening meal? I love making risotto with mushroom. I like it because it’s really healthy; you don’t have to add much cream or butter.

What do you snack on? During the day I always have a mix of nuts, because they give me energy and wake me up; also bananas.

What do you like to serve when entertaini­ng? Carbonara – it’s one of my specialiti­es. Maybe pesto rosso – red pesto.

What is your idea of food hell? I hate carciofi (artichoke) and I hate broccoli. I can’t eat it.

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