LIDIA: Buongiorno!

I'm Lidia Bastianich.

And teaching you about Italian food has always been my passion.

It has always been about cooking together and ultimately building your confidence in the kitchen.

So what does that mean?

You get to cook it yourselves.

For me, food is about delicious flavors... Che bellezza!

...comforting memories, and, most of all, family.

Tutti a tavola a mangiare!

♪ ANNOUNCER: Funding provided by... ANNOUNCER: At Cento Fine Foods, we're dedicated to preserving the culinary heritage of authentic Italian foods by offering over 100 specialty Italian products for the American kitchen.

Cento -- Trust your family with our family.

♪ ♪ ANNOUNCER: Grana Padano -- authentic, Italian, rich in tradition, yet contemporary.

ANNOUNCER: For over 140 years, Auricchio traditional hand-crafted provolone.

Made in Italy.

ANNOUNCER: Authentic Italian cured meats.

Paolo Rovagnati, the true Italian tradition.

ANNOUNCER: And by... LIDIA: Semplicità.

That means simplicity.

And in the Italian cuisine, simplicity reigns.

This pasta dish features a medley of flavors and textures that adhere beautifully to the delicate orecchiette pasta.

It's economical and so very satisfying.

Crepes were a childhood favorite of mine that still bring me back beautiful memories with every bite.

Today I like to make them with new, flavorful fillings like this one.

[ Speaks Italian ] Semplicemente Lidia.

Simply Lidia.

As a chef, I always think, "What else can I do?

What else can I add?"

Let me tell you, I'm always cautious and aware, because my memory goes back to the cuisine of my grandmother, the great-aunt, the simplicity of it and the deliciousness, the reflection of those cuisine in their surroundings, in the products.

Those fresh products were the most important thing.

Crespelle for dessert.

Something simple.

A little flour, eggs, a little bit of sugar made those crepes.

And then the stuffing, you know, the jams that were made from those wonderful apricots.

So, you know, if you have that carrier, that crespelle, it's simple.

Grandma would make a soup.

It was called brodo brostula.

And she would have this black pan, and she would make the bases like a roux.

So some good olive oil, and she would brown the flour, give it some color.

When that was nice and brown, she would just take simple water and pour it in there, season it with salt, and let it cook.

She made it a little thicker than regular stock, but not thick.

And then at the end, when she was ready, she felt that the flour had been cooked in this soup, she had two eggs, put some salt, and whisked the egg in that brodo brostula just like stracciatella.

Can you imagine that?

That's a whole meal.

And it was a delicious meal.

And if she felt she wanted to nourish us even more, she would put a few leaves of spinach or whatever greens she had.

And so this kind of simplicity.

And yet those flavors are so vivid, so embedded in my mind.

Sometimes I still make it for myself.

Orecchiette with breadcrumbs, pancetta, and cauliflower.

Here we are in Lidia's garden.

And this is a great dish with cauliflower.

And cauliflower -- very nutritious.

It lasts a long time.

So I'm going to make orecchiette with cauliflower and pancetta.

Let's put in in orecchiette to cook.

And there is just salt in that water, no oil.

I know sometimes you are tempted to put that oil in there, but don't do that.

Okay.

This is hot.

I have it going.

A little pancetta.

And I like my pancetta kind of a little bit on the thick side so that when you're biting it, you are getting a nice kind of little bite under your tooth.

Okay.

Let's put that in there.

So if you don't have pancetta, can you use anything else?

Of course.

You know, you can use bacon.

You can use prosciutto.

If it doesn't have all that much fat to render, then, you know, you might need a little bit more oil.

Here, I'm going to put just a little bit of oil to get things going here.

Let's get this pancetta moving.

You know, I like it chunky, but it takes a little bit longer to caramelize.

Next, we're going to do the cauliflower.

Can you use any other vegetable the same way?

Absolutely.

Broccoli, red cauliflower.

You can use even leafy vegetables the same way, like kale in the wintertime, even cabbage.

I want these florets to be smaller, not too big.

So they cook quickly and kind of blend with the orecchiette.

Okay.

The pancetta is rendered.

I have a little bit of fat.

Let's throw in the cauliflowers.

And every little crumble.

The cauliflower is perfectly good.

Let me mix the orecchiette.

They're getting there.

Let me just cover this so I can raise the heat so that cooks while I cut the leeks.

So it's important, the leeks, that you wash them well because leaks tend to have sand.

They grow well in sand.

And so you want to wash them well, and then you just kind of slice them.

If you don't have leeks, what can you use?

The onion family.

You can use onions.

In the kitchen, be creative.

Let's see what this looks.

I'm going to throw in the leeks now.

[ Sizzling ] And I'm going to season this now with a little peperoncino.

Okay.

I said a little.

Not too much.

Salt, certainly.

Now, the pancetta has salt, so not too much.

Let me put a little bit of stock.

So I have stock.

I keep always -- You know, I make stock.

I make a big pot of stock, one like this and bigger.

I'm going to let the sauce cook now.

The flavors have to meld a little bit, mold together, and the cauliflower has to break down.

The pasta is cooking.

I'm going to clean up.

And when we come back, we are ready to plate and eat.

Here I am in my library again.

I'm going to check out what you have sent me.

What are your questions?

What do you want to know from me?

So let's begin with Chris.

"Do your herbs grow back like this every year?

If so, how do you keep them through the winter?

And are there some that you replant?"

Chris, some quick advice of what I do with my herbs.

Basil, I buy the seeds and I plant them.

And a lot of little plants come, and then I transplant them, separate them, and let them grow.

Bay leaves, I bring the whole plant.

I cherish the plant.

I bring it in and keep it warm and just right the whole winter.

On the other hand, some of the other herbs like sage, like thyme, I buy little plants, and they sprout immediately out.

So some I seed, some I bring in the house, and some I buy the little plants.

The winter is a difficult time.

So what does survive for me is basil and things like sort of leafy greens.

You put that on the window, and once you use it, it will not regrow and all of that, but it will last.

What I can tell you is, with herbs, when you have abundant of them in the summer, in the spring is that you freeze them.

To freeze them is that you take leaves while they're nice and green, you fill it up with water, you seal it, and you freeze it.

And they will stay green like that.

When you defrost and then use them, they will be a little wilted, but they will still be green.

So that's one way of keeping your beautiful herbs that you grow all summer in the house for the winter.

Ah, the sauce is perfect.

The pasta is cooked.

Let's dish it right out and right into the sauce.

And if you leave it a little al dente, it's going to finish cooking in the sauce.

Okay.

Let me... You know, I always tell you, your pasta smiles, but it needs a little oil to smile, so I'm just going to put a little bit of oil in here just like that.

♪ And here I have some breadcrumbs, and we'll put just a little bit in here to sort of bind it a little bit, the sauce, but then I want them on top to feel the crunch on top of the pasta when it's served.

Let's put a little bit of the breadcrumbs right in here like this.

Okay.

♪ Parsley.

♪ Ah, the pasta is really smiling at me now.

It is ready to go.

Looks great.

Okay.

Some grated Pecorino.

I always shut the fire when I add the cheese because you don't want the cheese to cook.

If it cooks, the cheese separates.

Oh, that looks good.

Maybe a just a little bit more of Pecorino.

You know, I love that.

I love cheese.

So here we are.

This looks great.

And we are ready to plate it.

So, you know, you can plate it individually.

You can put it in a big bowl.

You know, sometimes when I have all the kids, I bring the whole pot right to the table and let them kind of help themselves.

♪ All right.

♪ Oh!

Lidia's plate.

I've been forgetting Lidia.

That's no good.

That's no good.

This is Lidia's plate right here.

Okey-dokey.

So I'm going to add just a little bit of breadcrumbs to the plate on top just for the look.

Just like that.

Mm!

One, two.

Little crunch.

And it looks great.

And some Pecorino right on top just like that.

And this is great when you do it at the table or you give everybody a piece of cheese and let them do their own thing.

You know, whenever I cook, you guys look at me.

[ Speaking indistinctly ] I'm very curious myself, you know, how did it come out?

So I'm looking forward to every tasting that I do.

Okay.

So let's see.

♪ Mmm!

♪ Delizioso.

You know, the cauliflower and the Pecorino complement each other so well.

I mean, you know, they're from the same terroir.

They -- in the sense -- The orecchiette and all that -- that comes from that area.

And put together, it's delicious.

So, the birds are chirping.

And I'm going to finish this, and then I'm going to bring the rest to the table.

♪ ♪ Some of my favorite time in the kitchen has been teaching my grandchildren to grow into confident cooks.

And these days, even though they're living on their own, that doesn't mean they stop asking for my advice.

Sharing recipes.

Lemon ice.

Hi, Olivia.

OLIVIA: Hello!

how are you?

LIDIA: All right.

So how is life in the new apartment going?

OLIVIA: Good so far.

I just wanted to call you because I made one of your recipes that you taught me to make.

Last weekend, we made the granitas on the roof for some friends, and it was such a big hit.

LIDIA: Oh, right.

So tell me.

Granita is quite easy.

Which flavor did you make?

OLIVIA: With lemon, but we put some of, like, the wild cherries in, and it was delicious.

LIDIA: Oh, okay.

So, making granita is quite simple.

You know, you make the sugar syrup, boil sugar and water, then you squeeze your lemons.

You grate lemon rinds.

And then this delicious, flavorful water, you put in a little baking pan in the freezer, and it keeps on freezing and forming crystals, and then you scrape around, and you scrape the crystals back in until it all becomes a mound of crystals.

Is that what you did?

OLIVIA: Yes.

Exactly what we did.

Just how you taught us to.

And it was so good.

LIDIA: You can serve it certainly as a drink.

You can make a slushy out of it, you know?

OLIVIA: For some slushies.

And then we added some alcohol to some of them to make, like, a little cocktail, which was really nice, too.

LIDIA: And so how would you recommend to flavor the sugar syrup differently to keep it, to serve it?

How much in advance to make it?

OLIVIA: We made it the day before just out of convenience so it could be all ready to go, but I guess you can make it morning of, too, probably.

I'm sure, like, lime or maybe even, like, orange or grapefruit flavored would be really good, too.

We might have to try those next.

LIDIA: You can put it, like, in ice cubes, you know, in an ice-cube tray, and then you take those ice cubes and you put it in the blender, and you get a slushy right out that way.

OLIVIA: That's a good idea.

LIDIA: You know, cooking is all about the question of making do with what you have or what you're comfortable and sort of upping the ante now and then and making it differently.

OLIVIA: Mm-hmm.

We're always scraping together what we have in our fridge to make something, to make food, to make drinks.

So, we had some lemons, which is why we did the lemon-flavored granita.

LIDIA: Good for you.

I'm very proud of you.

And so you usually go up on the roof, weather permitting?

OLIVIA: If it's nice, yeah, we'll try to sit on the roof after work.

It's just relaxing, a good way to end the day.

So it's an extra treat to have a yummy granita up there, as well.

LIDIA: Okay...stay smiling.

Stay safe all the time.

OLIVIA: Love you.

LIDIA: Love you.

OLIVIA: Bye.

LIDIA: Ciao, ciao.

So it's great to see how, you know, these kids grow up, they become adults, and they make their own life.

But, you know, as Grandma, you always want to be part of that life.

Crespelle with wild cherries.

Lidia's cooking one of her favorite desserts, and that is crespelle.

It's a little crepe.

It's easy to make, so let me teach you, and you can make it in a pinch.

First, I'm gonna just make a little butter to soften, to melt actually, to add into the mix.

And now we'll make the batter.

And it's, in a way, a form of pancakes, if you will.

A little salt.

♪ Let's whisk that.

A little bit of sugar.

Water.

I want the batter just a certain consistency.

The consistency of melted ice cream -- that's what I want it.

Vanilla.

Okay.

The melted butter.

♪ And the flour.

♪ ♪ This is as simple as it gets.

Make it nice and smooth.

So, here I lined the pan.

I have a nonstick pan.

I am buttering it now.

The secret of a good palacinke is the actual thickness.

Get it as thin as you can.

And you want this to be hot, so you start from end, and you make sure that you roll it all around, that you don't make it too thick.

So, I'm looking at this.

You see?

A little more than half of the spoon.

That will do the trick here.

So, let's get it nice and brown.

And here I made some in advance because everybody loves them, and I wanted to make sure I had enough.

So, you know, let me tell you something about making crepes.

The first one never turns out the way you want it.

So, yeah, okay, you've got some color, but it's not like that.

So, do the first one.

The second one, because the heat of the pan -- everything is flowing -- it's gonna be just perfect.

You'll see.

Okay.

I'm buttering it now just like that.

You see with the -- have some soft butter.

And very quickly, just enough, get yourself some batter.

Stay in the hot moment.

Don't let the pan cool.

And swirl the batter all around... to close all of the -- All right.

So, now I like it.

I got it all over nice and thin.

And this goes quick, so keep an eye on it all the time.

♪ Okay.

♪ You guys get the idea, right?

You keep on making them.

Now let me show you how I decorate them and serve them.

Okay.

Let's do it a little bit fancy.

So, I'm looking at it.

This is melted chocolate in a double boiler, just plain.

And just spread it in the middle, just like that.

♪ A little bit of these wild cherries, which I love.

Let's say about four.

You just fold it over in four, just like that.

Ooh, it is still nice and hot.

Let me do two at a time.

I can do two at a time, just like that.

♪ Mmm!

Okay.

So, the cherries.

Mm-hmm!

Let's fold it in fours, just like that.

One.

♪ Two.

Just...mmm-mmm-mmm.

Now wait.

Where's mine?

Huh.

I have one for Lidia, of course.

♪ Okay.

And Lidia is okay with just this one.

Ah.

My goodness.

We got chocolate all over the place.

Let me clean up.

It could be worse, you know?

Oh, Lucia.

Lucia sent me a photo.

So, she goes, "I've been a fan of your cooking shows for many years.

Here's what I'm cooking these days."

Oh, these are nice crespelle with asparagus, with mushrooms.

Good for you.

This looks delicious.

Crespelle are crepes.

And they can be used instead of pasta any times, so it's another alternative to pasta cooking.

Continue cooking, Lucia, okay?

Barbara writes and asks the story of my bracelets.

In Italy when I was a youngster, these were very much in vogue.

Everybody had some.

So I came to the United States.

I was 12.

But when I was 16, my mother bought me five of these, one for each letter of my name, and she brought a charm, and that was my gift for my 16th birthday.

And I loved it, and I wore them so much that they ultimately -- Really, I used them all up.

And for a few years, I was without these bracelets, and I felt kind of naked.

And when I went back to Italy, I went to a jeweler, and I asked him to make 20 of them.

So here I have them.

I haven't used them up yet.

But I always have them on, Barbara.

I love them.

Thank you all for being here.

Thank you for sharing your life with mine.

And I hope I made your life a little easier and sweeter and tastier.

And now some whipped cream.

A dab of whipped cream on top.

And unsweetened whipped cream.

You have a lot of sweetness going on here, so I like unsweetened whipped cream.

Some of these cherries.

Delizioso.

And Lidia's.

Cherries and some juice.

Okay.

So...

I'll tell you if it's worth the effort.

♪ I could say goodbye to you right away and just continue to eat, but, no.

Here's your portion.

And, you know, as I always do, I invite you.

Tutti a tavola a mangiare.

Salute to you, to me.

I got to get back to my palacinke, to my crespelle.

Enjoy.

♪ Sometimes life really gets the best of us and you kind of say, "Oh, the heck with everything."

But, for me, something that kind of brings me back is the flavor, the smells of cooking.

And that is simple cooking.

Because if I put myself behind the stove and I cook something simple, like the soup that I told you before, it brings back my grandmother.

It brings back that whole setting.

It brings back my childhood.

It brings back the security that I had.

And it reassures me life will be fine.

You don't need complicated things to go on in life.

You can do with simple things, and sometimes the simplest things are best.

I feel that we shouldn't be concerned about complicating things and recipes in our lives, and food is sort of the common denominator that calms us all into real life.

What is real life?

It's enjoying eating, nurturing our body, nurturing our mind, and our emotions with feeding ourselves and our family and our friends.

And, of course, beyond food, what lifts your spirit is a song.

So here's Grandma.

She's taking us to the table.

[ Erminia singing in Italian ] ♪ ♪ LIDIA: Brava.

Brava.

[ Erminia singing in Italian ] LIDIA: Brava.

That's meaningful.

[ Erminia speaking Italian ] ANNOUNCER: The food from this series makes Italian cooking easy for everyone and showcases simple-to-prepare recipes that require fewer steps, fewer ingredients, and less cleanup, without sacrificing flavor.

The recipes can be found in Lidia's latest cookbook "Lidia's a Pot, a Pan, and a Bowl," available for $29.95.

To purchase this cookbook and any of her additional products, call 1-800-PLAY-PBS or visit shop.pbs.org/lidia.

ANNOUNCER: To learn more about Lidia, access to videos, and to get recipes, tips, techniques, and much more, visit us online at lidiasitaly.com.

Follow Lidia on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram @lidiabastianich.

♪ ♪ ♪ ANNOUNCER: Funding provided by... ANNOUNCER: At Cento Fine Foods, we're dedicated to preserving the culinary heritage of authentic Italian foods by offering over 100 specialty Italian products for the American kitchen.

Cento -- Trust your family with our family.

ANNOUNCER: Grana Padano -- authentic, Italian, rich in tradition, yet contemporary.

And by... ANNOUNCER: Olitalia.

"From chef to chef."

ANNOUNCER: "Lidia's Kitchen" studio provided by Clarke, New England's official Sub-Zero and Wolf showroom and test kitchen.