After spending an afternoon skipping through Toronto’s Junction neighbourhood I tucked myself in at Nodo Restaurant’s bar just in time for the dinner hour. Enthusiastic mixologists prepared a long line of cocktails while I sipped on an Aperol muddled number which had me fondly remembering my recent trip this past summer to Rome and the Amalfi Coast.
I spent the evening devouring a fine Italian feast with my good friend Jamie Knoepfli. Our forks swooped through the air in tandem as we devoured steaming bowls of pasta, perfectly scorched pizza and truffle adorned carpaccio. There is no better way to experience Italy than through the parade of plates that dance through a nona’s kitchen.
While spooning through a berry adorned panna cotta Jamie chirps, “Did you hear that Lidia Bastianich is coming to Toronto in October?” I soon found out that Jamie and his partner in crime Justin are perhaps Lidia’s biggest fans. The things you learn…
Later in the week I caught up with the duo on why Lidia holds such a special place in their heart. Jamie starts the ball rolling, “The first time we saw Lidia’s Kitchen, we stumbled across it as we were flipping through the channels on our TV. We weren’t necessarily expecting to watch the entire episode but we were surprised at how much we enjoyed Lidia’s charismatic character. We were reminded of our Italian roots and family traditions, which always consist of great company sharing stories and laughter over plenty of good food and drink.”
Justin adds, “Her recipes use simple ingredients like olive oil, fresh basil and pepperoncini which anyone can easily use in their kitchen. Lidia teaches her audience her favourite tips and tricks after years spent cooking in the kitchen. One of her most famous quips, ‘Never put oil in your pasta water!’ Clearly, we’d been doing it all wrong.”
The dapper duo have compiled some of their favourite recipes from the show including Lidia’s Celery Gratin, which was recently a big hit at a dinner party. Now it’s their weekly tradition to turn on TLN’s Lidia’s Kitchen for culinary inspiration.
I could see these two Italians really have a soft spot for Lidia who is often affectionately dubbed the “Julia Child of Italian Cooking.” I’ll be joining the duo on Friday October 14th for An Intimate Conversation with Lidia Bastianich at The Sony Centre. Toronto foodie fans will flock to Front Street that evening as celebrated local food writer Bonnie Stern moderates a discussion with Lidia followed by an audience Q&A. Tutti a tavola a mangiare!
