Culture

Lidia Celebrates America

beloved chef and Italian immigrant, Lidia Bastianich, travels from big cities to small towns in America to share the inspiring stories of first, second, and third-generation Americans forging their own way, and shaping the shifting definition of what it means to be an American.

Lidia Celebrates America: Overcoming The Odds

55m 45s

In this hour-long Lidia Celebrates America special, Lidia travels from big cities to small pockets of rural America, both in person and virtually, to share the inspiring stories of a diverse group of resilient Americans who have overcome extraordinary odds in their own lives, found purpose in serving their communities, and turned their loss into inspiring accomplishments.

Episodes

  • Lidia Celebrates America: Overcoming The Odds: asset-mezzanine-16x9

    Lidia Celebrates America: Overcoming The Odds

    55m 45s

    In this hour-long Lidia Celebrates America special, Lidia travels from big cities to small pockets of rural America, both in person and virtually, to share the inspiring stories of a diverse group of resilient Americans who have overcome extraordinary odds in their own lives, found purpose in serving their communities, and turned their loss into inspiring accomplishments.

  • Lidia Celebrates America: A Salute to First Responders: asset-mezzanine-16x9

    Lidia Celebrates America: A Salute to First Responders

    56m 20s

    Celebrity Chef Lidia Bastianich travels across the country visiting the men and women serving on the front lines, from firefighters in California battling wildfires, to medical workers fighting the coronavirus pandemic in New York. Lidia meets first responders who’ve worked quietly in the shadows, and now find themselves thrust into the spotlight by crises facing the country in 2020.

Extras + Features

  • Flavors That Define Us: Trailer: asset-mezzanine-16x9

    Flavors That Define Us: Trailer

    1m 41s

    Chef and Italian immigrant Lidia Bastianich shares stories of first, second and third-generation Americans shaping the shifting definition of what it means to be an American. As America grows more diverse than ever before, immigrants must figure out how much of their culture to keep and what to leave behind, and many are more openly sharing their heritage with a new country they now call home.

  • Lidia Celebrates America: Overcoming the Odds - Preview: asset-mezzanine-16x9

    Lidia Celebrates America: Overcoming the Odds - Preview

    28s

    In this hour-long Lidia Celebrates America special, Lidia travels from big cities to small pockets of rural America, both in person and virtually, to share the inspiring stories of a diverse group of resilient Americans who have overcome extraordinary odds in their own lives, found purpose in serving their communities, and turned their loss into inspiring accomplishments.

  • Losing ‘Home’: asset-mezzanine-16x9

    Losing ‘Home’

    2m

    Hear what it was like for Maria and Marco Peña, whose home was destroyed by the devastating flood waters associated with Hurricane Harvey, in 2017. Lidia connects with the family and talks about what it’s like lose your home, a feeling she experienced, viewers learn, when she entered a refugee camp in Trieste, Italy at the age of ten.

  • A Gathering of Truly Inspirational People: asset-mezzanine-16x9

    A Gathering of Truly Inspirational People

    2m 15s

    As with her other specials, Lidia Celebrates America: Overcoming the Odds culminates with a gesture of food – a gathering of some of the people she has visited along the journey. At Contento, in New York City, Yannick Benjamin’s restaurant profiled in the special, Lidia sits down to eat with these inspiring people, and shares dishes she prepared in their honor.

  • A Restaurant without Barriers: asset-mezzanine-16x9

    A Restaurant without Barriers

    3m 32s

    Lidia visits Contento, the East Harlem, NY restaurant of sommelier Yannick Benjamin. Paralyzed in a car accident, Benjamin’s restaurant is barrier-free for those with disabilities. He also co-founded Wheeling Forward, a nonprofit that supports and empowers people with disabilities, as well as Wine on Wheels, a sister program that raises awareness and funds for disabled people in the wine industry.

  • Advocating for Justice After A Wrongful Conviction: asset-mezzanine-16x9

    Advocating for Justice After A Wrongful Conviction

    6m 35s

    Convicted of a crime that he did not commit and sentenced to 28 years in a maximum-security prison Jarrett Adams served nearly 10 years before being exonerated. Adams used the injustice he endured as inspiration to become an advocate and attorney for the underserved. Lidia meets with Jarret virtually to cook one of her favorite pasta recipes, Bucatini with pancetta, tomatoes and onions.

  • Harlem Grown, An Oasis In New York City: asset-mezzanine-16x9

    Harlem Grown, An Oasis In New York City

    3m

    When Tony Hillery’s business fell apart during the 2008 financial crisis, he began volunteering at a school cafeteria in Harlem, New York. Shocked by what he saw, he founded Harlem Grown, an independent, non-profit organization whose mission is to inspire youth to lead healthy and ambitious lives through mentorship and hands-on education in urban farming, sustainability, and nutrition.

  • A Simple Wish for a Former Foster Child: asset-mezzanine-16x9

    A Simple Wish for a Former Foster Child

    5m 29s

    Kristen Thomas aged out of the foster care system she grew up in, but went on to foster a child of her own. When the nonprofit One Simple Wish granted Kristin her wish for cooking classes, Lidia supplemented the classes with her own culinary course at Kristen’s home in North Carolina. Watch Lidia and Kristen prepare a Panzanella Salad together, with Brussel sprouts, butternut squash, and kale.

  • Lidia’s Chopped Salad: asset-mezzanine-16x9

    Lidia’s Chopped Salad

    2m 7s

    In her special Lidia Celebrates America: Overcoming the Odds, as part of the preparation for the final meal, Lidia is joined again by former foster child Kristin Thomas. Together they prepare a Chopped Salad with escarole, chicory, parsley, red onion, roasted red peppers, fennel, mozzarella, and salami. The dressing is comprised of oil, vinegar, mustard, eggs, salt and black pepper.

  • Lidia Celebrates America: A Salute to First Responders: asset-mezzanine-16x9

    Lidia Celebrates America: A Salute to First Responders

    30s

    Celebrity Chef Lidia Bastianich travels across the country visiting the men and women serving on the front lines, from firefighters in California battling wildfires, to medical workers fighting the coronavirus pandemic in New York. Lidia meets first responders who’ve worked quietly in the shadows, and now find themselves thrust into the spotlight by crises facing the country in 2020.

  • A Salute to First Responders Extended Preview: asset-mezzanine-16x9

    A Salute to First Responders Extended Preview

    2m 33s

    Celebrity Chef Lidia Bastianich travels across the country visiting the men and women serving on the front lines, from firefighters in California battling wildfires, to medical workers fighting the coronavirus pandemic in New York. Lidia meets first responders who’ve worked quietly in the shadows and now find themselves thrust into the spotlight by crises facing the country in 2020.

  • Holy Name Medical Center, Teaneck, New Jersey: asset-mezzanine-16x9

    Holy Name Medical Center, Teaneck, New Jersey

    2m 6s

    Chief Nursing Officer at Holy Name Medical Center, in Teaneck, NJ, Michele Acito, and Staff Photographer Jeff Rhode talk about what happened when the number of COVID-19 patients coming into the hospital exceeded capacity. In just five days, and with everybody including nurses and janitors pitching in to help, a 36-bed ICU was constructed on the premises.

Schedule

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