-Buongiorno.

I'm Lidia Bastianich, and teaching you about Italian food has always been my passion.

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

I'm showing off.

Does this look like a good meal?

So, make it.

For me, food is about gathering around the table to enjoy loved ones, share a meal, and make memories.

Tutti a tavola a mangiare!

-Funding provided by... -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... -Grana Padano -- authentic, Italian, rich in tradition, yet contemporary.

♪ ♪ -Authentic Italian cured meats.

Paolo Rovagnati -- The true Italian tradition.

-Locatelli Pecorino Romano cheese from Italy -- handcrafted from 100% sheep's milk.

♪ -Olitalia -- From chef to chef.

-It's easy for life to escape us, but cooking anchors us and reminds us to cook for our loved ones and for ourselves.

This salad makes a great lunch or light dinner.

Its clean and simple preparation will leave you feeling nourished.

These beautiful rollatini of sole are filled with seasoned breadcrumbs and dressed with roasted cherry tomatoes.

Join me in my home and let's cook.

As I got more into the food industry and the attention ever more on nutrition, you know, this talk about the Mediterranean diet, and I began to think about my experience in the Mediterranean.

And, certainly, the big element was our meals had a lot of vegetables, had a balance between legumes and green vegetables or roots.

And then the proteins were about one-third of the dish.

What I found in America is that proteins are the main protagonist.

Vegetables are secondary, you know?

The multitude of little, smaller meals is also a part of the Mediterranean diet.

So, in retrospect, I'm looking at the meal that my grandparents had.

It fits into the Mediterranean profile and it makes sense.

So, ever more, we should desire to find that balance.

Steamed Broccoli, Cannellini and Egg Salad.

Salad.

We're going to make a great salad today.

I know, you're thinking of leafy things, but today we're going to make a steamed, cooked broccoli salad with beans -- cooked beans -- and hardboiled eggs.

You can imagine it's delicious and it's very nutritious and it's easy.

So, you clean the broccoli, first.

I like to use everything of the broccoli, so I'm going to use the stem.

And this, you just kind of pull like that and then I'm going to cut this in kind of matchsticks.

I'm going to cut this, too, so they're all the same size, more or less.

I always tell you, when you cook things, in the same recipe, try to make the same size, so it cooks quicker.

So, let me throw that in.

[ Sizzling ] That will take a few more minutes.

And let's finish cleaning the broccoli.

The broccoli, I like the florets, nice and small, like this.

So, we can just break it open.

So, you can just break them.

You can cut them off.

Let's put the rest of the broccoli right in there.

Cover it.

You want a quick boil, just to blanch them.

The beans, you could cook them, but if you cook the beans, then you need to soak them the night before and then you cook them until they're nice and soft.

Or, these are actually canned beans, so, I can give myself a good meal and not really fuss too much about it.

Here is the onion that I'm going to add.

Red onion.

And I like red onion.

If you don't have red onion, white onion is fine.

I do like half moon and thin.

I'm looking at this.

Is this enough?

Maybe a little more.

Okay, that is enough.

Let me take some ice water.

And I'm going to put the broccoli right in here, so they're going to stop the cooking process.

Let's see how they are.

Mm, they're in a nice point.

These salads, I like room-temperature, you know?

So, you could cook the broccoli before and put them in the refrigerator and, when you're ready, you just toss the salad together, absolutely.

Now, could you do this with other vegetables?

Absolutely.

This could be string beans.

This could be carrots.

But carrots, I don't know if I like.

But green vegetables, like this, you can substitute with the one you like.

So, I'm going to let this chill.

We're going to strain them out and we'll be ready to dress the salad.

Buongiorno.

Benvenuti to my library.

Here is where I read your emails and answer you.

And here, Sarina & Terry write, "After watching your show, we made your Tuna & Chickpea Salad with Boiled Eggs (& Crusty Bread on the Side)."

I'm glad you're following to the word.

"You motivate us to cook all the time.

Two of your biggest fans, Sarina & Terry."

Let me click on this photo.

I want to see it.

Oh, look how good that looks!

Good for you!

And I like that you put the eggs on the side, so people can mix it in when they want it and how because the egg will break down.

So, I love the way you have it set, ready to go, the crusty bread on the side.

Just to add to your creativity, you know what I love in this salad as well, and it's not in the recipe?

Scallions, chopped scallions, the green part, too.

Really makes a delicious addition.

A little secret for you.

A little tip for you.

Thank you.

Thank you for writing in.

So, the broccoli has cooled and we're ready to mix the salad.

Let's put the broccoli all right in.

Some olives cured in oil.

They always bring a lot of flavor to the salad.

Now, here are some eggs.

And let's cut the eggs.

In four like that.

So, you see how simple this is, but there's a lot to it, in a sense of nourishing, in a sense of flavor.

And let's put that in here.

And let me toss it gently, first, just like that.

You can see.

Look at the beautiful colors.

Salt.

Put some pepper.

Olive oil.

And wine vinegar.

Let me just taste a little bit.

A little bit more salt.

Always taste.

I tell you all the time, through your years of cooking, you have collected a lot of information, things that you liked, and it's all stored in your food library.

And, when you're tasting, you're kind of recalling, "Is it what I remember was good?"

So, keep on tasting.

We are ready to plate.

♪ Okay.

I'm trying to balance everything out, that each plate has a lot of the broccoli, some eggs, olives.

I want some olives in there.

The kind of fluffier and bigger chunks are at the top.

So, don't forget to fish at the bottom when you are making your plate.

That looks nice.

Let me get some.

And the olive is there and the broccoli's here.

So, we are all ready to mangiare.

And, of course, we're going to drink something with it.

So, what I'm making here is the shrub, they call it now.

I used to drink this when I was a little girl.

Grandma used to make it for me.

And what she would do is just water.

I didn't have ice.

Cold running water, nice and cool.

Wine vinegar, which Grandpa made.

Simple syrup.

Grandma would put in regular sugar.

But here, because I have the ice, I put the simple syrup.

Makes this drink delicious, but you can use it for other drinks as well.

And, in this case, some sparkling water.

Let me tell you, Grandma would just take it from the faucet.

And she would put it in bottles.

We would take it to the beach and she would put it in those mesh bags and they were reusable all the time.

She would put the bottle in there.

And when we went to the beach, we would take that net bag with the bottle, put it in the sea.

The handle of the bag, we put a big rack and the bottle would kind of be in the sea and stay nice and cool for us to drink the whole day.

I like to taste.

Let's see.

Okay.

It's good.

It brings back memories.

Mmm!

Let's pour some for me.

I'll pour some for you, too.

How's that?

Ah.

I'm sure that you have this experience that sometimes you are just going into a room and there's an aroma and it takes you back to a place that you had almost forgotten about.

So, here I am.

Let's taste this salad.

Olive, broccoli, bean.

I'm taking you to a very special place for me -- when I was back in the courtyard with Grandma.

♪ Just as I remember it.

Delicious!

So many memories in this glass of, as you call it, shrub.

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

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

My granddaughter Olivia, she's finished college.

She's working, and she's working awfully hard.

[ Ring ] Olivia.

Here she is.

Olivia, how you doing?

-Hi!

I'm good.

How are you?

-Okay.

Did you have a full day today?

Did you work hard?

-Yes.

Full day of work.

Definitely hard to find time to eat good meals, like we always used to have, but I wanted to ask you for some recipes that I can make that were healthy or quick or easy to make.

-You know, the salad is easy.

You can add some beans to it, some tuna, or whatever.

But you deserve a treat, now and then, and you sort of stay away from sweets, but I know you like sweets.

-Yeah.

Not every single day, but a few times a week, if you have any ideas.

-I have plenty of ideas for you and just what you like.

How about baked stonefruits, you know?

Like when peaches are in.

You can put them on a sheet pan.

Put a little butter or not put a little butter.

Put a little brown sugar or not put a little brown sugar.

Put a little bit of honey on top of it.

And you can also take some sliced almonds and you put them on top and they get toasted and they give you that crunch and all of that and it's something that you like again.

And fast, high temperature will do.

So, you want a crust on the outside.

You want it to become a little soft on the inside and voilà.

-Yeah, that sounds good.

Maybe with some ice cream?

-I wouldn't dare mention ice cream, but, since you mention it, that's something that I would have.

And you can poach pears in wine with some cinnamon sticks, cloves.

That's very good.

-I'll have to try that, too.

-There you go.

While we're cooking fruit, how about grilling it?

Pineapple slices.

-Mmm, grilled pineapple sounds good.

-Pretty easy.

Let's say you eat the fruit.

You can save all those peels, put them with some water, with some dried prunes, maybe some dried raisins, some lemon juice, a little bit of sugar.

Then you let it cook and it becomes a great tea.

You can drink it hot, but also a cool tea in the summer.

-Oh, that sounds good.

-Yeah?

So this could all be a little treats for you, that work so hard.

So, tell me, after work, when do you eat?

-Usually, I'll try to do a little bit of grocery shopping, so I can pull something together, like easy here after work.

But if I'm tired after a long day, I'll go to Mom's or any restaurant.

So, it just depends on how I'm feeling.

But I do try to make as much as I can here.

-So, this is, as we said, your second year out.

What would you recommend to newly graduated young women?

Tell me.

-You should move out as soon as possible.

-[ Laughs ] -Independence is good.

-So, how does real life really look to you now?

-It comes with a lot of responsibility, but it's a lot of fun.

-Well, we're very proud of you because you work very hard.

-Thank you.

-So, send me a little message when you're free for dinner and let's have dinner together.

-Okay.

[ Singsong ] Love you.

-Love you, [ Speaking Italian ].

Don't work too hard.

-I won't.

-Get your naps.

Get your rest, okay?

-I know.

Okay.

-Ciao, ciao.

-Bye.

-That's nice.

That's beautiful.

When you're a grandma, you outgrow many things, but you take on new things, new roles, as a grandma, and I love every bit of it.

Rollatini of sole with cherry tomatoes.

Fish.

I know you all want to eat, you love fish, but you don't like to cook it so much.

This is the easiest fish dish you'll ever have.

So, let's start with some garlic.

Okay.

Some butter.

And you scatter it around because this will make the sauce.

And lots of lemon slices.

And cooked lemon is really good.

Now, some wine.

A lot of you ask me, if you don't want to cook with wine, well, you can put some water, squeeze a little lemon juice in there for acidity, or a little bit of vinegar.

Just don't overdo it with the acidity because you have the lemons right in here.

Or you can put some vegetable stock.

Now, let's get to the fish.

Here I have the filet of flounder.

This is the ideal fish.

I'm going to season some breadcrumbs, roll them in there.

So, let's season the breadcrumbs.

Let me add chopped parsley and some thyme.

Let me just chop it up a little bit.

Let's put that in.

Some lemon rinds.

And, when you're grating lemon for anything, whether it's savory or sweet, always remember -- just the yellow part.

Not the pith, just the zest.

Fish and lemon go wonderfully together.

And scallions.

I like a little scallions in there.

And, in this case, nice and fine scallions because we're going to put it in the breadcrumbs.

Use the green part of the scallions, too, you know?

I always use it, in salads or whatever.

Let me chop it a little more.

Okay.

So that looks good.

Now, I'm going to season some breadcrumbs with some salt.

Just like that.

Peperoncino.

I like it a little spicy.

Let me toss this.

And I'm going to add olive oil.

Enough olive oil just to moisten all of the breadcrumbs because, otherwise, they would get dry in the fish.

Sometimes the best thing is you just go in with your hands like this.

I need a little bit more oil.

Okay.

This is a breadcrumb seasoning that you can use with so many things.

You can roll shrimps in this and bake them.

You can make the baked clams with this.

You can put it on top, if you're grilling a filet of fish in the oven.

It'll give you a crunch and it'll give you flavor.

So, here we are.

Let me set the fish.

Just a little bit of seasoning before.

I want the larger part to be on the outside because, as I roll it, then I'll put that underneath and it will stay put.

a spoonful of the filling.

Just like that.

And we'll roll it.

Here we go.

And that's what I meant, this underneath, so it doesn't open up.

Because, if you leave it on top, it's going to open up.

And we're going to nestle them, one next to each other right here.

♪ Just a little bit of salt.

Seasoned breadcrumbs.

Mmm.

♪ That looks good and easy.

Alright.

♪ ♪ So you can see how easy this is and you can make this in advance because it only takes about 20 minutes.

Let's finish this.

Just a little bit of salt, now.

Some oil on it.

Like that.

And we're going to top it with some tomatoes.

Put some oil in the tomatoes, get them dressed as well.

A little bit of salt.

So, a little bit of seasoning, as you go along, with everything.

Let's put some breadcrumbs right on top.

Okay.

Let's put the tomatoes around, so the tomatoes bake with it as well.

Okay.

So, I have this tomato juice here with a little bit of oil.

It's flavorful.

You know, if you think, okay, maybe you can shake it.

Once it's in there, just shake it like that, but don't mix it because it's so beautiful like this.

So, hot oven, 400°.

About 20 to 30 minutes.

Easy.

Looks delicious.

Let me check my social media and see if anything is there.

A lot of you reach me on social media and I read.

So, here it goes.

Here's one.

"I never cook with fish.

Can you give me some tips on how/where to get started?

I've always wanted to.

I just find it all intimidating from shopping to cooking.

Warm regards - John."

John!

You got to get going on this fish.

Go to a store and find the freshest fish you can find.

And you can tell the freshness of the fish just by the smell.

If it doesn't smell good, it's not fresh.

So get yourself a nice filet of striped bass or red snapper and you take it home, you season it, salt and pepper, a little bit of flour.

Put it in a pan with a little bit of olive oil and just flip it over one side and then on the other side.

Once it's nice and crisp on both sides, it is done.

Add a little squeeze of lemon, a drizzle of oil, some parsley, and that's your first cooked fish meal.

From then you can develop tomato sauces and whatever, but that's as simple as fish gets.

So, let's get started with that and then you can write back for some more ideas.

So, keep those questions coming.

Okay.

This is done.

How beautiful does that look?

And I do have a little bit of rice and beans, just to go alongside of this.

Let me choose a nice one.

Oh, they're all nice.

But!

Let me choose some of the tomatoes.

Mmm!

You see how the lemon kind of breaks down and it's delicious to be eaten?

Let me just.

Mmm!

It's hot!

That nice tomato right on top.

Some sauce around it.

That looks good.

That's one serving.

Same way.

And Lidia wants this one.

How do you like that?

Okay.

That's for Lidia.

So, now, let's put this on the table.

Here is for additional servings.

Now, the rice.

Let me put the rice separate, so everybody can take as much as they like.

Let's put some butter in it.

And it's simply rice cooked with a little bit of salt.

And then towards the end, I throw in some string beans, as you can see here.

Some cheese, of course.

That looks yum-my!

A moundful.

Lidia has a little side dish, too.

Right here.

Now, does this look like a good meal?

Of course it does.

I have my little flounder.

I have my rice.

I chose a little bit of Chardonnay.

You know, there's acidity here.

There's a lot going on, so, I need a white wine, certainly, but one with a little bit more body.

So, let me just cut right in the middle, so you can see how good this looks.

I will taste the rice, first.

♪ Delicious, mellow.

A little of the string beans.

Now, let's try this.

You know, I love fish and flounder is a fish that kind of everybody likes.

So, I'll tell you how it tastes.

Mmm!

Juicy, a little acidic.

But then inside, the scallions, the thyme, all of those goodies.

And a sip, of course, of the Chardonnay.

But before I do that, because I'm going to go through this -- I'm hungry...

I want to invite you.

Certainly, we have enough.

And, as we say at my house -- because we are at my house -- Tutti a tavola a mangiare!

♪ You know, diet is within each of us and what we choose to eat.

Eating seasonally.

Eating maybe not as much at one time.

That doesn't mean to diminish the pleasure of eating.

Just balancing -- eating the right thing at the right time, in the right amounts.

Taking a little passeggiata.

In Italy, you always see these people walking hand-in-hand in front of the cafes.

Sort of wear it off, begin to use up those calories that you just ingested.

Actually, people watching -- they're making their passeggiata -- is a sport in Italy.

I love it myself.

I sit down, I have an espresso, and I watch.

I see Italy go by in front of me.

Grandma?

I don't know whether she was conscious in her eating habits, but she didn't eat too much meat.

She loved her vegetables.

She loved her salad.

And she would nibble, especially as she got older, on fruits.

She would take a little cluster of grape in her hand, on a napkin, and she would, outside, sit and nibble on her grapes.

[ Singing in Italian ] ♪ ♪ -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... ♪ 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.

♪ ♪ ♪ -Funding provided by... -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... -Grana Padano -- authentic, Italian, rich in tradition, yet contemporary.

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

♪ ♪