For the 2026 back-to-school season, Arredo3 is transforming the kitchen into a space for discovery, independence and sharing. Introducing “Cucina a colori”, a recipe book aimed at children and teenagers, the proceeds from which will be donated to the Città della Speranza Foundation.
September is the month of new beginnings. We get back to our books, reorganise our days and, after the summer break, home once again becomes the centre of a daily routine made up of rhythms, appointments and little rituals. Among these, there is one that can become much more than just a necessity: cooking together.
It is precisely from this idea that it stems “Colourful Cooking”, the new project from Arredo3, a Veneto-based company that has been designing and manufacturing ‘Made in Italy’ kitchens since 1984. A recipe book designed for the younger generation that focuses not only on the relationship with food, but also on the relationship with the home, with family and with time.
Because the kitchen, even before it is a functional space, is a place where things happen: where people chat, experiment, learn and wait for something to cook. It is a space where design meets everyday life.
A kitchen to be enjoyed, not just admired
The project is part of the vision that Arredo3 has been pursuing for years: that of the kitchen as a place for socialising. A philosophy that is also encapsulated in the brand’s recent campaign, “FALLING IN LOVE IN THE KITCHEN”, and which, in *Cucina a colori*, takes on a tangible, everyday dimension.
The recipe book, produced in collaboration with Simona Stoppa, the author of the articles, and the nutritionist Ileana Gervasi, invites parents and children to gather round the kitchen worktop. The aim is not merely to suggest healthy recipes, but to turn the process of preparing them into an experience.
At a time when television, video games and smartphones take up a significant proportion of children’s and young people’s free time, cooking can be a simple yet surprisingly rewarding alternative: a hands-on, creative and shared activity that can bring a sense of purpose to even the most ordinary of tasks.
You also learn about food with your eyes
The structure of the book begins with an immediate and intuitive element: the colour.
The recipes guide children and teenagers in discovering food through a colour-coded system that makes the experience more accessible and engaging. Fruit and vegetables, in particular, thus take centre stage in an experience that begins with observation and curiosity, even before tasting.
This approach is consistent with the recommendations of nutritionist Ileana Gervasi, the project’s scientific adviser. During childhood, in fact, important eating habits are formed, and our relationship with food is also shaped by direct experience: observing, smelling, touching, preparing and only then tasting.
The kitchen thus becomes a sort of little home laboratory. A place where you can get to know ingredients, textures and aromas without turning healthy eating into a lesson, but by making it a game.
From the recipe to self-sufficiency
One of the most interesting aspects of the project is its focus on different age groups. Some recipes are designed to be made together with mum and dad, whilst others can be tackled independently by teenagers.
The language is deliberately simple and straightforward, and the recipes are accompanied by step-by-step illustrations. There are also plenty of handy tips and advice on how to tackle the most common challenges, including one of the great childhood classics: children refusing to eat their vegetables.
The result is a cookbook that does more than just tell you what to eat, but it suggests a different way of relating to food. And, indirectly, to one’s own autonomy.
A design project that also has a social dimension
There is also a second, equally important aspect that gives the project further significance: The proceeds from the sale of the book will be donated to the Città della Speranza Foundation, an organisation dedicated to supporting scientific research into paediatric diseases, with a particular focus on oncohaematological conditions.
“Cucina a colori” thus becomes a project where individual wellbeing and collective responsibility come together. The simple act of buying a recipe book translates into a tangible contribution to a social cause, with children and their future at the heart of it all.
This approach forms part of the broader commitment to sustainability and responsibility pursued by Arredo3, through its focus on people, the environment and the quality of its processes.
Ileana Gervasi
Ileana Gervasi è dietitian, a graduate of the’University of Brescia. He obtained a a Master’s degree in Vegetarian Nutrition and Dietetics and a Master’s degree in the Diagnosis and Treatment of Eating Disorders and Obesity. Over the years, she has explored the field of maternal and child health with passion and curiosity, focusing in particular on paediatric nutrition, prevention and the promotion of a healthy relationship with food from early childhood onwards. She is the author of e-books and two books on paediatric nutrition: *Lo svezzamento* (Shackleton) and *A tavola senza battaglie* (Red edizioni), which focuses on how to foster the development of a positive relationship with food from an early age. Through her website paginaInstagram@mamma.insegnami.a.mangiaree and her blogwww.ileanagervasi.it, she shares content aimed at families and professionals, with the aim of guiding parents and children towards a more informed and relaxed approach to food.She is co-founder of SNIP – Scuola di Nutrizione InPediatria, Italy’s first training school in paediatric nutrition dedicated to healthcare professionals.
The joy of creating beauty
The foreword to the book summarises the philosophy behind the initiative well: The kitchen is where it all happens. A setting made up of simple gestures, scents, moments of anticipation and sharing.
It is a definition which, when viewed through the lens of design, takes on a special meaning. Designing a kitchen is not, in fact, merely a matter of organising worktops, storage units and appliances. It means imagining how that space will be lived in: who will use it, what actions they will carry out, what conversations will take place, and what memories will be created.
From this perspective, “Cucina a colori” is almost a publishing extension of Arredo3’s philosophy. It is an invitation to make the most of the kitchen, to experience it as a dynamic, open space, capable of accommodating both the preparation of a meal and the building of a relationship.
Because going back to school can also mean coming home. And simply finding yourself in the kitchen.
“Cucina a colori” is available in print on Amazon. The proceeds from sales will be donated to the Città della Speranza Foundation.
