Photo: WGBH
Bonnie Boyer, locally renowned for her Pennsylvania Dutch recipe and the best shoofly pie in the area. Bonnie and her grandson Adam show Bastianich how to make the regional dessert.
SDPB1: Sunday, December 12, at 6pm (5 MT) Lidia Bastianich is a celebrated chef and restaurateur who has published 13 cookbooks, coauthored with daughter Tanya, and companion books to her Emmywinning television series Lidia’s Kitchen, Lidia’s Italy in America and Lidia’s Italy. In her series Lidia Celebrates America, Bastianich travels across the United States in a celebration of culture through food. Bastianich says she is on a cross-country journey to explore the heartland of America, connecting with people and finding how small American towns preserve their deliciously diverse culinary traditions. “Small towns are the heart of our nation, rich in traditions that have been handed down generation after generation. I feel honored for the opportunity to gain access to people’s long-held cultural traditions.” ~ Lidia Bastianich In small, rural towns across the country, Americans are preserving their cultures through food and traditions. In Lidia Celebrates America: A Heartland Feast, Bastianich travels to some of these 4
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communities, sharing the stories of the people she meets and giving us a lens into their world. “I really respect rural America because that is what holds America together,” says Bastianich. “It’s those people that really are the heartbeat of America.” Shoofly Pie in Bethlehem, PA Not long after Bastianich’s arrival in the U.S. from Pola, Occupied Italy (now Croatia), she lived in a small town called Sunbury in central Pennsylvania, located on the Susquehanna River. Sunbury was Bastianich’s first exposure to small town America, and she loved the rolling hills, mountains, vast open spaces and river views which reminded her of her homeland in Istria. In Sunbury, Bastianich learned how to cook Pennsylvania Dutch specialties including shoofly pie and succotash made with peppers, potatoes and dumplings. Bastianich also visits Lancaster County in rural Pennsylvania, home to the Pennsylvania Dutch and Amish people. In Bethlehem, known for its holiday celebrations and decorations, Bastianich meets
Christmas in Natchitoches, Creole Country, Louisiana Under magnolia trees draped in Spanish moss, Bastianich enters the heart of Louisiana Creole Country. Here the culture derives from its early inhabitants, individuals known as gens de couleur libres (free people of color), who descended from a combination of French and African roots. Homegrown vegetables and fruit, wild game, fish, gumbo and étouffée, combined with spices like red cayenne pepper and filé (dried, ground sassafras leaves) provide the basics of Creole cuisine. Other Creole dishes include smoked bacon, ham and sausage, boudin, andouille, and zandouille. Strong Spanish influences are reflected in meat pies, dirty rice and tamales. Pigs & Tamales in Denton, Texas As in South Dakota, fairs are a rich part of Texas life, preserving agricultural traditions and introducing new technology. For many, fairs are a family affair. Bastianich joins Kate Swan, age 12, who raises pigs to show at the state fair. Kate’s father shows her the ropes, and even makes the whips that help steer the pigs. Kate is proud to have taken over most of the responsibilities herself and shows Bastianich how to wash, feed and pamper the pigs. In Denton, Bastianich also visits Jorge Landeros who owns Milpa’s Kitchen, an award-winning TexMex restaurant, and a center for the community. Landeros discusses the tradition of making tamales and how special they are to the Mexican culture at Christmas time.
