Bastianich Lidia Matticchio - Lidias Mastering the Art of Italian Cuisine: Everything You Need to Know to Be a Great Italian Cook

MY INFINITE GRATITUDE for my first experiences in the kitchen, which are the foundation and the basis for my passion and love of cooking today, belongs to my maternal grandmother Rosa, who nurtured me, inspired me, and taught me much about food and about life in that small courtyard, more than sixty years ago. An equal amount of gratitude I have for my mother, Erminia, who has always encouraged me and been by my side helping me and sharing with me the raising of my family, so that I could pursue my passion and my profession, cooking. Much love and gratitude also to my coauthor and daughter, Tanya Bastianich Manuali. Without her brilliant organizational, research, and writing skills this book might never have happened. Her loving support, encouragement, and collaboration give me the strength and desire to write ever more recipes and carry on with her our culinary traditions.

Such a comprehensive book can only be a collaboration of many. Deep appreciation goes to Amy Stevenson, who is always by my side as we cook, measure, and create: she is a true gem and I am honored to be her friend. A big thank-you to Peter Gethers and Christina Malach, whose ideas, tweaking, and input made this a better book. Thank you to Jenna Brickley for not letting any of the details escape us. Thank you to Paul Bogaards for our many years of working together and for his friendship. To the Knopf promotional team of Sara Eagle and Erin McGrath, much thanks for getting the word out there and supporting this book. It is always a pleasure to work with Kristen Bearse and, in addition, her keen eye and sense of design are incomparable. Kelly Blair, thank you for making the cover look wonderful and knowing what we want to put our best foot forward. For the wonderful drawings, I give heartfelt thanks to Anthony Volpe, who really worked con passione.

Thank you to my restaurant and office staff; only with their support am I able to find the time to write my books. 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 BostonLaurie Donnelly, Anne Adams, Bara Levin, and Matthew Midura. Their enthusiasm is contagious and their professionalism is exemplary. My show would not be possible without my sponsors: Cento and Il Consorzio del Grana Padano, and thanks to the wonderful showroom consultants at Clarke who, along with Sub-Zero Refrigeration and Wolf, have provided me with my beautiful new kitchen.

SOMEHOW FOOD HAS always been a very big part of my life, not only for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, but as part of my existence, part of my growing up, and ultimately my lifes dedication. I grew up in Istria, a small peninsula in the Adriatic. It was once the northeast corner of Italy; then after World War II, it was given to Yugoslavia, a newly formed communist country, and it is now part of Croatia. Life was meager in my formative years under the communist regime, but I was blessed with my rich heritage and a loving family, in which Grandma Rosa and Grandpa Giovanni grew, produced, cured, and dried most of the food that we needed. Our house was set in the center of a courtyard, with the animals pens on the outside of the courtyard. This was on an unpaved street in a small town called Busoler, with our planting fields standing next to the courtyard and other homes. I was Grandma Rosas little assistant, and I loved it. Milking the goats and helping to make ricotta, collecting the still-warm eggs and helping to make fresh pasta, collecting clover to feed the bunniesthese were all my jobs. I would tag along for the harvest of the grapes when it was time for Grandpa to make the wine, and would climb up the olive trees in November to harvest the hard-to-reach olives for Grandma. November was also the season for the slaughter; one of my jobs was to hold the casing while Grandma filled the sausages; another was to bring the salt to Grandpa so he could rub it into the hind legs of the pig, which he would cure and then slice into delicious thin slices of prosciutto by late summer. The plowing and planting of the earth started in February and March, and I would be in charge of bringing the merenda, a midafternoon snack, to Grandpa in the fields. As the vegetables and fruits grew, I had my little basket ready for the harvest. The summer was glorious with all the delicious fruits. First the strawberries and cherries, then the apricots, peaches, plums, figs, and grapes; in the fall, we had pears, apples, almonds, and walnuts. The process of saving the extra summer bounty for the long cold winter months was a lot of work: shelling the dry beans, braiding the garlic, canning the tomatoes, and laying the figs and prunes in the summer sun to dry to be enjoyed in the holiday desserts. Those flavors, aromas, and sentiments are still part of me, of my passion, and who I am today as a chef.