Chef Lidia Bastianich talks about new book 'Lidia's Celebrate like an Italian'

Chef Lidia Bastianich, Emmy award-winning TV host, best-selling cookbook author, restaurateur and co-owner of Eataly, visited Windy City Live to discuss her newest creation.

Lidia revealed her latest cookbook "Lidia's Celebrate like an Italian" which she wrote with her daughter, Tanya. In the book, she shares recipes for nearly every celebration plus suggestions for setting a table, making pizza for a group and choosing the perfect wine.

Lidia gave tips on great Italian cooking and brought some of her favorite dishes including Milan style risotto with braised veal.

LIDIA'S BOOK SIGNING

WHEN: 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. Wednesday

WHERE: Eataly Chicago, 43 E. Ohio St., Chicago

Click here for more information

LIDIA IN GLEN ELLYN

WHEN: 7 p.m. Thursday

WHERE: McAninch Arts Center in Glen Ellyn

She will share behind-the-scenes stories, notes from her newest cookbook, and might even spill the beans about the best dish at Eataly.

Click here for more information.

Lidia Bastianich

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LidiaBastianich/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lidiabastianich

Twitter: https://twitter.com/LidiaBastianich

Eataly Chicago

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/EatalyChicago

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/eatalyusa

Twitter: https://twitter.com/EatalyChicago

Hashtags: #EatalyChicago

RECIPES

MILAN-STYLE RISOTTO - Risotto ala Milanese

This recipe is on page 199 of "Lidia's Celebrate like an Italian."

Serves 6

7 cups homemade beef stock or canned low sodium beef broth

1/2 teaspoon saffron threads

3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1 medium onion, finely chopped (about 1 cup)

1 large shallot, finely chopped (about 1/4 cup)

2 cups Arborio or other short grain rice

1/2 cup dry white wine

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more to taste

2 ounces beef marrow, chopped

2 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into bits

1/2 cup grated Grana Padano

Freshly ground black pepper to taste

Warm the stock in a small saucepan over low heat; keep it hot. Pour a 1/2 cup of the hot stock over the saffron in a small heatproof bowl.

In a large straight-sided skillet or Dutch oven, heat the olive oil over medium heat. When the oil is hot, add the onion and shallot, and cook until golden, stirring often about 8 minutes. Add the rice and stir to coat with the oil. Toast the rice until it becomes translucent, 1 to 2 minutes. Pour in the wine and stir until evaporated. Add a 1/2 cup of the remaining hot stock, and the salt. Cook, stirring constantly until the stock has been absorbed. Stir in the beef marrow.

Continue to add the hot stock in small batches, just enough to moisten the rice completely, and cook until each successive batch has been absorbed. About 10 minutes after the first addition of stock, stir in the saffron mixture. Stir constantly and adjust the level of heat so the rice is simmering very gently until the rice mixture is creamy but al dente, about 18 minutes from the time the wine was added.

Remove the casserole from the heat. Beat in the butter until it's completely melted, and then beat in the cheese. Adjust the seasoning with salt if necessary, and add pepper. Serve immediately, ladled into warm shallow bowls.

BRAISED VEAL SHANK - Ossobuco alla Milanese

This recipe is on page 288 of "Lidia's Celebrate like an Italian."

Serves 6

VEAL

About 8 cups chicken stock (page 148)

6 veal shanks cut 3 inches thick (about 1 pound each)

2 fresh bay leaves

4 whole cloves

1 sprig fresh rosemary

10 juniper berries

2 teaspoons kosher salt

All-purpose flour, for dredging the meat

1/2 cup vegetable oil

1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil

2 cups finely chopped onions

1/2 cup shredded carrot

1/2 cup finely chopped celery

1 tablespoon tomato paste

1 cup whole Italian San Marzano tomatoes, crushed by hand

2 cups dry white wine

1 orange, zest removed with a vegetable peeler, and juiced

Zest of 1 lemon, removed with a vegetable peeler

Freshly ground black pepper to taste

GREMOLATA

2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh Italian parsley

2 plump cloves garlic, fine chopped

Finely grated zest of 1 lemon

Put the stock in a medium saucepan, and warm it over low heat. Stand the shank pieces up on a flat end. Cut six lengths of twine, each about 2 feet long, and wrap one around the outside of each ossobuco, in the middle (the meat will look like it's wearing a very tight belt). Tie the twine securely, and trim the ends. Cut a small square of cheesecloth, and wrap in it the bay leaves, cloves, rosemary sprig, and juniper berries. Tie the packet with twine.

Season the veal with 1/2 teaspoon of the salt. Put some flour in a shallow bowl, and dredge the veal all over in it. Heat the vegetable oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. When the oil is hot, brown the veal all over, turning to brown all sides, about 8 minutes. Remove the veal to a plate as it browns.

When all the veal is browned, carefully pour the hot vegetable oil out of the empty pan, leaving the crusted bits of meat on the bottom. Pour in the olive oil, set the pot over medium-high heat, and add the onions, carrot and celery. Stir them around for a minute or two, scraping the pan to release the caramelized bits. Drop in the cheesecloth herb sachet, season with the remaining 1 1/2 teaspoons salt, and cook, stirring, until the vegetables are sizzling and wilting, about 4 minutes. Clear a space in the pan, and add in the tomato paste. Cook and stir the tomato paste in that spot until it is toasted and darkens a shade or two, about 1 minute, then stir it into the vegetables. Add the crushed tomatoes, stir well, and bring to a boil. Raise the heat to high, pour in the wine, and cook for a couple of minutes at a boil, to evaporate the alcohol. Pour in the orange juice and about 6 cups of the hot stock; drop in all the strips of citrus zest, and bring the liquids to a boil. Return the ossobuco to the saucepan, side by side so they're evenly immersed in the sauce. Add more hot stock if necessary, just to cover the tops of the ossobuco with liquid. Cover the pan, and lower the heat so the sauce is perking steadily. Cook for an hour or so, covered, checking that the sauce has not reduced too much and is still covering the meat (add stock if needed).

Turn the ossobuco over in the pan. Cook, uncovered, for another hour or more at a bubbling simmer, adjusting the heat as necessary to maintain the slow but steady concentration of the sauce. As the braiding-liquid level gradually drops, carefully turn the shanks again, so no parts dry out. Cook for 2 to 3 hours in all, until the meat at its thickest part is tender enough to pierce with a fork with only slight resistance, and the sauce is thick, reduced well below the tops of the shank pieces. Season with fresh pepper to taste. Turn off the heat. Lift the shanks from the pot with sturdy tongs, letting the sauce drain off, and place them on a large platter. Cut off the twine, and discard the sachet.

Strain the sauce through a sieve, pressing on the solids, and return it to the pot to keep warm. (If it is too thin, quickly reduce it over high heat.) Stir together the chopped parsley, garlic and lemon zest for the gremolata just before serving, for freshness. Rewarm the veal in the sauce and turn to coat. To serve, spoon sauce over the veal on the platter, and sprinkle lightly with gremolata (about 1/2 teaspoon per serving). Serve with small spoons for scooping the delicious marrow from the bones, and pass the remaining gremolata at the table.