A Gathering of Truly Inspirational People

To accompany her latest special, Lidia also hosts a series of short cooking videos. Each reflects her beloved teaching style, mixed with a dash of storytelling. Today Lidia is in her kitchen making Mussels Triestina, a simple ten-minute dish that brings up memories of her childhood. Find out Lidia’s tricks of the trade for cooking mussels, things that give the dish her signature style.

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.

To accompany her latest special, Lidia also hosts a series of short cooking videos. Each reflects her beloved teaching style, mixed with a dash of storytelling. Watch Lidia make Mushroom Risotto, while telling the story of opening her first restaurant, Felidia, as young woman. Hear what happened when Julia Child and James Beard came in to the restaurant asking specifically for the Risotto.