Come meet Lidia at Central Market  in Houston, Texas on November 2nd between 2pm - 4pm.

Get your copy of Lidia’s newest cookbook, “Lidia Cooks from the Heart of Italy”  signed
and taste some delicious Bastianich wines.

CENTRAL MARKET
3815 Westheimer Road
Houston, TX 77027
(713) 386.1700

Can you guess what this is?

Think that it can be used as an alternative for chocolate!

Tune into CREATE this Saturday, October 10th for an exciting all-day marathon of Lidia’s Italy.

Don’t miss out on watching your favorite episodes!

For a complete marathon episode schedule, click here.

CAVATELLI WITH BREADCRUMBS, PANCETTA AND CAULIFLOWER

Cavatelli con Pancetta e Cavolfiore

 Makes 6 servings

Simply delicious........

……….

What you’ll need:

Salt
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
Three ¼-inch slices pancetta (about 8 ounces), cut into 1 x ¼ x ¼-inch sticks (about 1 ½ cups)
1 pound dried cavatelli, cavatappi or shells
2 medium onions, diced ½ inch (about 2 cups)
½ head cauliflower, stalks removed, florets cut into ½-inch pieces (about 3 cups)
Crushed red pepper
1 ½ cups hot chicken stock
¼ cup chopped fresh Italian parsley
¼ cup fine dry breadcrumbs, or as needed

……….

What to do:

Bring 6 quarts of salted water to a boil in an 8-quart pot over high heat.

Heat 2 tablespoons of the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the pancetta and cook, stirring occasionally, until the pancetta has rendered some of it s fat and is lightly browned but still soft in the center, about 4 minutes. Don’t overcook the pancetta.

Stir the cavatelli into the boiling water. Return to a boil, stirring frequently. Cook the pasta, semi-covered, stirring occasionally, until done, about 10 minutes.

Stir the onion into the skillet and cook until barely wilted, about 2 minutes. Stir in the cauliflower and cook, stirring occasionally, until the cauliflower is wilted and begins to brown, about 4 minutes. Season lightly with salt and a little crushed red pepper.

Pour the chicken stock into the skillet, bring to a boil and lower the heat so the sauce is at a lively simmer. Cook until the vegetables are tender and the liquid is reduced by about one-half, about 5 minutes.

If the skillet is large enough to accommodate the sauce and pasta, fish the pasta out of the boiling water with a large wire skimmer and drop it directly into sauce in the skillet. If not, drain the pasta, return it to the pot and pour in the sauce. Bring the sauce and pasta to a boil, tossing and stirring to coat the pasta. Check the seasoning, adding salt if necessary. Stir the breadcrumbs, parsley and remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil into the pot. Cook, stirring and tossing the pasta until the sauce is lightly thickened. Serve at once.

Official Book Release Party with

LIDIA BASTIANICH

at Becco Restaurant!!

Wednesday, October 21st, 2009 at 7:00pm

We’re extremely excited to announce the release of Lidia Bastianich’s
newest cookbook, LIDIA COOKS FROM THE HEART OF ITALY!!

This dinner will feature Lidia’s favorite & most culturally diverse
recipes from twelve regions of Italy.

In celebration of this new release Becco is hosting a five course dinner highlighting Chef Gallagher’s picks from this cookbook.  Help honor the “First Lady of Italian Cooking” by attending this exciting event!!

$175 per person (all inclusive)

* Please note that the cookbook is NOT included in this price. Cookbook sold separately!

To PRE-ORDER “Lidia Cooks from the Heart of Italy,” click here.

Becco Restaurant
355 West 46^th Street
New York, NY 10036
212.397.7597

We here at Tavola Productions & Lidia’s Italy are so excited to bring you 26 NEW EPISODES of the Emmy-nominated, public television show, Lidia’s Italy. The new episodes just launched on September 5th, so tune into your local station for times and episode descriptions.

That being said, Lidia is already hard at work filming the next 26 episodes- to complete the 52-episode series- and is currently in Italy filming. We just wrapped the in-studio shoot- which takes place in her home kitchen- and was it fun! It is always such a wonderful experience to learn from Lidia, and to be a part of this show, and work with all the talented professionals involved, is just a gift.

So to check out some fun, candid clips that I shot while filming in-studio, just click here.

And, here are some photos taken while Lidia and crew film throughout southern Italy. Hope you enjoy!

……………………………..

Trabocchi in Abruzzo----traditional fishing huts built on stilts.....

A festive affair.....

Sound and camera capturing footage...

Linda Somma and crew at work....

The crew navigating the streets....

Looking for the perfect recipe for summer grilling?

Try Chef Fortunato Nicotra’s “Grilled Shrimp - Palermitana Style.”  This is a typical way of preparing shrimp or prawns in the town of Palermo.

Let us know what you think!

………………………………..

18 U8 shrimps (or any small shrimp, U16/21; see note) or prawns
3 cups breadcrumbs (preferably Japanese panko)
4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Salt to taste
1 tablespoon mixed herbs (thyme, chives, parsley)
½ cup Parmigiano-Reggiano or Grana Padano cheese
Zest of 2 oranges and 2 lemons

………………………………….

Open up shrimp or prawn on back side and remove the black vein. Place shell-down on a baking sheet.

Mix the bread crumbs with the olive oil, salt, mixed herbs and cheese. Gently pat each shrimp with the bread crumb mixture. Grate the orange and lemon zest over each shrimp.

Turn grill on high. Also turn broiler on high at the same time. (For prawns, place shell-down and cook only on that side for 5 to 7 minutes on the grill.)

Remove and place in the broiler 3 to 4 minutes (still shell-down) so that it gets a nice crust.

Optional accompaniment:
6 tomatoes cut in half
12 spring onions cut in half

Place the bread crumb mixture on the top of the tomatoes and the onions, and place on the grill with breadcrumb mixture facing up. Grill for approximately 4-5 minutes, then finish in the broiler for about 3 minutes or until crunchy and brown. Serve with the shrimp.

Note: Larger shrimp are sold in U or “under” measures; U8 means there are fewer than 8 shrimp to the pound. If you choose to do the smaller shrimp, devein them and remove the shell, and stack them on a skewer. Approximately 8 U16/21 will work per person. Place on the grill for approximately 4 minutes on each side. There is no need to put smaller shrimp in the broiler.

Are you looking for a delicious, summery dessert to compliment your dinner?

Well, try my Caramelized Tomatoes- sweet, juicy, and suprisingly indulgent. Don’t think tomatoes will make a good dessert? I’ll bet you’re wrong!

Try this simple summer delight and let me know what you think. Here’s what you will need to get started.

……………

1 pint vanilla ice cream
1 orange
6 tablespoons granulated sugar
2 tablespoons water
6 vine-ripened plum tomatoes, cored, peeled, cut in half lengthwise, and seeded
1/4 cup Grand Marnier or other orange liquer
Sprigs fresh mint

If the ice cream is frozen solid, let it stand at room temperature while preparing the tomatoes.

With a vegetable peeler, remove the zest (orange part of the peel only, no the underlying white pith) from the orange in wide strips. Cut the zest into very thin strips. Squeeze the juice from teh orange and reserve the strips of zest and juice separately.

In a medium-size, heavy, nonreactive skillet, make a caramel with the sugar and water. Just as the caramel turns a medium amber color, remove the skillet from the heat and carefully add the orange zest and orange juice.

Return the skillet to the heat and bring to a boil, stirring constantly to dissolve any caramel that has hardened. Add the tomatoes and Grand Marnier. Stand back from the range and ignite the Grand Marnierwith a long fireplace match. (If you do not have a long match, let the sauce boil and extra minute or two.) Continue cooking, shaking the skillet vigorously, until the flames subside and the sauce is thickened, about 2 minutes.

Scoop the ice cream into shallow dishes and spoon some of the tomatoes and the hot syrup over each serving. Garnish with mint sprigs.

Well, you can!

Meet Lidia this Saturday, August 15th from………

~ 3 pm to 4 pm ~

Free Lecture

Central Railroad of NJ Terminal
Liberty State Park
200 Morris Pesin Dr 
Jersey City, NJ 07305-4687

Lidia Bastianich talks about cooking with fresh summer produce and local dairy products.
There is no charge to attend the lecture, but please Register Online or call 1-800-553-2303.

and again from……..

~ 4 pm to 5 pm ~

Special Reception with Lidia

Registration required!
The Blue Comet Auditorium, located within the Central Railroad of NJ Terminal at Liberty State  Park
Following the lecture, there will be an opportunity for you to talk with Lidia at a special reception in the Blue Comet Auditorium.  Attendees are limited to 75.

For more information, call NJN  1-800-553-2303 to register for the special reception.

$60 pair of tickets (includes membership)
$50 for one ticket (includes membership)