The premier of NSW, Morris Iemma, has never forgotten his Italian roots. He and his wife invite you into their home for a family feast with a definite Italian flavour.
Pick up the February issue of The Weekly to read more about lunch at the Iemma’s, complete with the recipes prepared for their Tuscan-style lunch. Plus, get Morris Iemma’s mother’s biscotti recipe only on our website.
With four young children trying to talk at once, life around the dinner table at NSW Premier Morris Iemma’s Sydney home can sometimes out-decibel even the parliamentary bearpit. “Ive always found family to be relaxing, but sometimes when all four are in full flight …,” says the premier, with a laugh. Morris, 45, and his accountant wife, Santina Raiti, 39, who share an Italian heritage, say for them, family always comes first.
Morris and Santina make a point of eating meals with as many family members as possible gathered around the dining table, so they can all exchange news of their days, however orderly — or not.
Often, at weekends and holidays, the family expands to include Morris’ mum, Maria, 65, and dad, Guiseppe, 70, who came from southern Italy to settle in Australia in 1960, and Santina’s mum, Rosa, 70, a migrant from nearby Sicily.
Today, the group has gathered to sit down to a big, traditional Italian meal, served up in true Tuscan style on the patio, accompanied by a glass of the red wine that Guiseppe makes himself, and finished off with Maria and Rosa’s specialty biscuits (you’ll find Morris Iemma’s mother’s biscotti recipe here).
“We don’t tend to do much formal entertaining because it’s too hard with the kids,” says Santina. “But we love having our family around.”
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