Bastianich - Lidias Italy in America

THIS IS A BORZOI BOOK
PUBLISHED BY ALFRED A. KNOPF

Copyright 2011 by Tutti a Tavola, LLC

All rights reserved. Published in the United States by Alfred A. Knopf, a division of Random House, Inc., New York, and in Canada by Random House of Canada Limited, Toronto.

www.aaknopf.com

Knopf, Borzoi Books, and the colophon are registered trademarks of Random House, Inc.

Food photography by Christopher Hirsheimer

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Bastianich, Lidia.
Lidias Italy in America/by Lidia Matticchio Bastianich and Tanya Bastianich Manuali.1st ed.
p. cm.
eISBN: 978-0-307-70061-2
1. Cooking, Italian. 2. CookingUnited States. 3. Italian American families. 4. Cookbooks. I. Manuali, Tanya Bastianich. II. Title.
TX723.B3225 2011 641.5945dc23 2011013581

Jacket photographs by Christopher Hirsheimer
Jacket design by Carol Carson

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ALSO BY LIDIA MATTICCHIO BASTIANICH

Nonna Tell Me a Story: Lidias Christmas Kitchen

Lidia Cooks from the Heart of Italy

Lidias Italy

Lidias Family Table

Lidias Italian-American Kitchen

Lidias Italian Table

La Cucina di Lidia

Lidias family as newly arrived immigrants in 1958, standing in North Bergen, New Jersey, with a view of the New York City skyline

This book is dedicated to all of the immigrants like my mother, Erminia, who left behind their country and families to come to America in search of a new life, in search of opportunity so their families and children could have a life of freedom and a chance at a better life. Their hard work, ingenuity, and courage have helped to make America what it is today.

At the Andy Boy Farms in California, harvesting broccoli rabe

Harvesting radicchio in Salinas Valley, California

T here are so many people to thank when a book is complete. It is a collaboration of hard work, sharing ideas, guidance, and a lot of time spent together developing, testing, and ultimately tasting, and I want to thank all of my great team.

I thank Judith Jones for her ever sound advice and creative stimulation. We have worked together now on five winning cookbooks. I have learned much along the way and for this, I thank you. To Jessica Freeman-Slade, a new addition to my book work: thank you for your enthusiasm, for fresh perspectives, and for your incredibly thorough editing. And of course Ken Schneider, thank you for pulling it all so diligently together. Thanks to my kitchen cohort, Amy Stevenson, for her always dependable shopping, testing, and writing for the book as well as for being our culinary producer for the companion TV series.

For capturing my food through your lenses and making it all look beautiful, unending thanks go to Christopher Hirscheimer and Melissa Hamilton. For tying up all the efforts and hard work into a wonderful design, thank you to Carol Devine Carson and Kristen Bearse. A special thanks to my old friend Paul Bogaards and his team for their endless efforts in marketing and promoting my works.

Thanks to Robert Barnett and Deneen Howell from Williams Connelly (wc.com) for helping me when I needed assurance and security most. This book would not have happened without your guidance and counsel.

Where would I be without my family? They inspire my work and support me. Erminia, my mother, is a constant source of wise words for me. My two children, Tanya and Joseph, have paid me the greatest compliment, following in an industry that I love so dearly. I thank them for understanding their mother and allowing my passion to be infectious. Thank you to my daughter-in-law, Deanna, for taking care of my son and grandchildren. Thank you to my son-in-law, Corrado, for supporting my new business ventures with sound legal advice and good business sense. And not enough could be said about my love for my five little darlings: Olivia, Lorenzo, Miles, Ethan, and Julia. Thank you all for being the greatest family a mother could wish for.

Every successful woman has a strong team behind her, and leading my team is Shelly Burgess Nicotra. Her dedication to me and her intelligence is incomparable. Thank you, Shelly. To the young ladies in my office, Lauren Falk, Haley Salles, Meghan Liu, and Alexi Caputo, thank you for holding down the fort.

Hand in hand with my books, there are people I would like to thank for making my show on public television possible. Thank you to the American Public Television team for always doing a stellar job distributing my show. And thanks to the wonderful team at my presenting station, WGBH in Boston. Their enthusiasm is contagious and their professionalism is exemplary. My show would not be possible without my sponsors: Grana Padano, Colavita, and Perugina. I thank them for believing in what I do and for their support. Thank you also to the following companies for contributing: Le Creuset, OXO, Williams-Sonoma, LaFrieda Meats, Segafredo Coffee, Keil Brothers, San Pellegrino and Panna Waters, DArtagnan, Baldor Foods, Bastianich wines, and Lidias Pasta.

While I am on the road filming and researching, there is an army of people who work and make sure my businesses continue on as I would have them. For their dedication and hard work, thank you to the staff of Felidia, Becco, Del Posto, Lidias Kansas City, Lidias Pittsburgh, and Eataly.

A final thank you goes to all the Italian American immigrants and artisans who, during my travels, research, and filming, showed me their passion for all things Italian.

I have written about Italian American food and given you recipes before, but it has become clear in my travels through the United States that there is so much more to tell about the Italian American experience. It is a story that is also about Italian immigration, and about the struggles of settling and finding a home, of feeding a family, of making a new life, and of building America. This is a country where immigrants of all cultures are welcomed, a land whose very fiber and strength is the diversity of its people, and putting food on the table for the family was, and still is, the quest of immigrants of every culture.

Starting with this questionhow did immigrants put food on the table for their families?I began my journey toward uncovering the Italian American story of food. Thousands of miles and many meals later, I share with you here some of the stories and facts, the triumphs and losses, the heroes, the artists, and the entrepreneurs I encountered. Along the way I have tasted and collected many recipes, and in this book the recipes tell the story of the Italian immigrant, from the earliest to their present-day descendants, now fourth- and fifth-generation Italian Americans.