Giada at Home (2008–…): Season 5, Episode 21 - Ladies Empowerment Lunch - full transcript

I'm excited because today,

I'm having lunch
with three inspiring women.

A school principal...

JACQUELINE:
Good morning, scholars!

ALL: Good morning,
Dr. Sanderlin!

All right!

...a photographer...

Ooh, those flowers
look gorgeous!

GIADA: ...and a young woman
who started a charity for kids.

BERNI: It's just a simple idea
that's turned into

something
bigger than we ever imagined.



And I have a menu
that celebrates their success.

A vibrant and impressive salad
that's really easy to make.

The dressing adds
a fun little kick.

Buttery fillets topped with
a cool and creamy sauce.

Bright and refreshing.

Watermelon and strawberries

blended with
a sweet and minty tea.

A delicious lunch
with three women

I can't wait for you to meet.

All right,
to ladies' empowerment.

JACQUELINE: All right.
Ladies' empowerment.

-- Captions by VITAC --

Closed Captions provided by
Scripps Networks, LLC.

JACQUELINE:
Good morning, scholars!



ALL: Good morning,
Dr. Sanderlin!

All right!

Oh, what have you learned?
We've been reading.

Can I have a high five
from everybody?!

[ Cheering ]

When I came, this school was

one of the schools
that was academically declining.

But when I arrived, I found out
it was more than that --

A half-painted school,

a lot of dirt on the yard --

Not an engaging atmosphere.

GIADA: But Dr. Sanderlin made it
her mission to change all that.

Let me see you
walk down peace highway.

And it went way beyond
a fresh coat of paint.

JACQUELINE: I noticed that
there were really good kids.

I wanted choices for them --

a chance to come together

and make this school
kind of like home.

GIADA: This dynamic principal

created programs
that transcend the classroom.

Thank you
for all that you're doing.

A vegetable garden
that kids planted themselves...

...computer lab...

JACQUELINE: Excellent.
WOMAN: Good job.

...music room,

and a sense of
enthusiasm and pride.

You feel it
the second you step on campus.

WOMAN: Men.
Men.

JACQUELINE: You guys know
music notes, I heard.

ALL: Yes!

Okay,
which ones do you know?

[ Children shouting ]

JACQUELINE: They are so happy.

I have a hope
for what they're gonna do

because I feel like what we've
been able to provide them,

they're now able to take.

And I think
that's our job as educators --

is to help our scholars
find that

there is possibility in you.

I've just started heating up
some vegetable broth

for my quinoa with
roasted eggplant, apple,

and cumin vinaigrette.

And I'm gonna add
1 1/4 cups of quinoa

and 2 cups of vegetable broth.

And we're gonna add
a little bit of salt.

And what you want to do is
bring the broth to a boil,

and cook the quinoa
just like you would rice.

Put the lid on,
and then just let it simmer.

And this is gonna simmer
for about 15 minutes

until it's nice and tender.

Let's get started
on the eggplant.

And, you know, I have to say
that I love eggplant.

I grew up
eating a lot of eggplant,

and one of my favorite ways
to eat it is roasted.

Roasting it is fantastic,

and in Italy, we make a lot
of sauces with roasted eggplant

and a lot of dips as well.

Cut the eggplant in half,

and then cut it in strips.

I've already
greased my baking sheet,

and I'm just gonna
put the eggplant

onto the baking sheet.

And we're gonna add
a little bit of olive oil.

Keep the eggplant
nice and moist.

A little salt to season,

and a little bit of pepper,

and just toss it
with your fingers.

Very simple.

We're gonna put this
in a 400-degree oven

and let it roast
for about 30 minutes

until it's golden
and super tender.

We're gonna get started
on the dressing,

and I need my spices.

We're gonna start by
toasting cumin seeds.

Grab a little skillet.

We're just gonna toast
2 teaspoons of cumin seeds.

And the great thing about this

is that when you
toast these cumin seeds,

they add the warmest flavor
to the dressing.

So, you want to let these toast
at about medium heat

for about two minutes.

In the meantime,

we're gonna start
making our dressing.

1/4 cup of olive oil --

nice-flavored, fruity olive oil.

And 2 1/2 tablespoons
of apple cider vinegar.

Then we're gonna add
some cinnamon --

just about
1/8 teaspoon of ground cinnamon.

It's really good with
the nuttiness of the quinoa.

And we're also gonna add
1/8 teaspoon of ground cloves.

Ahh!

The ground cloves
have a more --

like, a stronger warmth
and smell to them.

I'm going to just
chop up a shallot.

And just gonna need one shallot.

And, you know, I like
a little bit of an onion flavor,

and it wasn't until
I went to school in Paris

that I learned to use shallots
in salad dressing.

When you make
a lot of French food,

you use a lot of shallots,

but I really like them
because in dressings,

they're sweet and mild.

We're gonna give this
a quick, little whisk.

Little bit of salt,
a little bit of pepper.

Okay.

So, now, let's take a look
at our cumin seeds over here.

[ Sniffs ]

Ahh! They smell so good.

So, you just want to
toast them a little bit.

We're just gonna
put them in the grinder.

There we go.

Perfect.

We're gonna put the lid on,

[ Whirs ]
seal it, and go.

There we go.

[ Sniffs ] Ahh!

And we're just gonna add them
right into the salad dressing.

Give this a nice, little whisk.

Okay.

So, now, time to add an apple.

So, I have
a Honeycrisp apple here,

and I like them 'cause
they're sweet and crunchy.

Add the apples
into the dressing.

And we'll get rid of that.

And we're just gonna
kind of toss the apples

to make sure they get coated.

Perfect.

So, let's take a look
at the quinoa.

So great.

Take a fork and fluff it up

like you would couscous or rice.

So, what we're gonna do is just
add it directly into the salad

and allow the warm quinoa
to absorb the dressing.

So, now, I just want
to toss the quinoa

with all the dressing.

Let it absorb it.

Let's take a look
at our eggplant.

It should be
golden and tender and delicious.

[ Sniffs ]

I love it. Look at that.

It's also a color-combo thing
that I just love

and the texture.

So, now, we'll toss the eggplant
right in there.

Now...

I'm gonna add
some dried cranberries.

I love the sweet, tart flavor
of the cranberries,

plus the color's phenomenal.

So, 1/2 cup of dried cranberries

right in there.

And 3/4 cup
of toasted, chopped walnuts.

I love the walnuts
'cause they're nice and rich,

and they add a nice crunch,

and I always think, like,
if you're not gonna add meat,

the nuts really give you

that sort of meaty texture
that I love.

Okay.

Before I show you the
beautiful plating of this salad,

I want to make sure that
it tastes just right.

So nutty and warm
from that cumin.

All right, to plate this,

I have some watercress
and I have my platter.

And what I like to do is

basically just
make a bed of watercress.

They're beautiful leaves,

and I think they
look gorgeous like this.

Plus, they add a nice green
to the salad itself.

If you can't find watercress,

you can just use any kind of
lettuce you like.

So, now, we're just gonna

spoon the quinoa salad

right in the center
just like that.

And you can see
all the different colors.

And see how the watercress
kind of just

brings the salad to life?

And that is my quinoa salad.

Okay, so, the salad is done.

Up next, I'm gonna make a drink.

It's my melon, berry, and mint
iced tea.

Vibrant, festive,

and full of
sweet and refreshing flavors.

[ Camera shutter clicking ]

I attended a photography class
with my mom,

I think, when I was 6.

Mom, can you
bring in some lemons?

I want to show how
you can just spruce up a room

by bringing the garden inside.

The visuals, the lighting,
the storytelling --

it just kind of stuck with me.

Okay, that looks great.
Love that.

GIADA: My friend Amy
sees beauty everywhere.

AMY: I realized I needed
to do something that
inspired me every day.

Oh, I love how they're
catching the light.

Push the front ones
in that way just a hair.

Yeah, there you go.
That's it.

GIADA: And Amy's sensitive eye,
in turn,

inspires all of us.

AMY:
Perfect. Ooh! I love that.

I take pictures of people,
food, interiors, travel.

I really want it to be personal,

and I want it to be
from the heart,

so I think
that's really important,

and I hope that comes through.

[ Camera shutter clicks ]

Time to make my simple syrup

for my melon, berry, and mint
iced tea.

We're just dissolving
a little bit of sugar --

about 1 1/2 cups of sugar
in 5 cups of water.

You want to bring it to a boil,

and then you're gonna
give it a nice stir.

And you want the sugar
to dissolve,

which happens pretty quick.

And we're gonna
add some tea bags

'cause it's gonna make iced tea.

So, I'm gonna add
five Earl Grey tea bags.

I really like the Earl Grey.

It's got a nice kick.

It's a little bit warming.

We're also gonna add
a nice bunch of fresh mint

right in there.

And we're gonna
turn the heat off.

We're gonna allow
the mint and the tea bags

to just steep for a few minutes.

So, while that steeps,

let's get started
on the fruit part of this.

So, what we're gonna do is

we're gonna puree
watermelon and strawberries.

So, 2 cups of diced watermelon,

and a lot of times now,
you can actually

buy diced watermelon
at the grocery store,

which makes your life
a lot easier.

There we go.

So, now, what we're gonna do is

we're just gonna cut the tops
and halve 16 strawberries.

They just work really well
with the tea and the watermelon.

Toss them right in there,

and we're gonna
blend this all together.

So, here we go.

[ Whirs ]

Perfect.

And it does. It smells like
a sweet fruit candy.

It's so good.

All right, so, we're ready
to combine the two together,

but first, let's just take out

and remove
the tea bags and the mint.

Try and squeeze the tea bags
and the mint just a little bit

to get all the extra flavor

into the iced tea.

There we go.

All right.

So, now, we're gonna
pour the tea

into our pitcher.

We're also gonna pour

the blended
strawberries and melon.

And give it a nice little mix
just like that.

Now...

to add
a little bit more flavor,

we're gonna add 1/4 teaspoon
of peppermint extract.

And the peppermint extract adds

[Sniffs] a nice vibrant flavor.

And we add that right in there.

And you want to
measure the peppermint extract

because
it's very potent and strong,

so you don't want to
add too much to it.

We're also gonna add
a little bit of lemon juice --

Just about a teaspoon or so
of lemon juice.

You know, the lemon juice

will just kind of
balance out the sweetness.

And then add
a little bit of salt.

And the salt,
like the lemon juice,

balances out the sweetness

from the fruit
and the simple syrup.

So, now I'm gonna
pop this in the fridge

and let it chill
until we're ready to drink it,

and I'll put out
a bottle of Prosecco

for anybody who wants to
top it off with a little bubbly

and a few garnishes.

And up next,
I'm gonna get started

on my pan-seared salmon
with tzatziki.

Grilled filets topped
with a green, creamy sauce.

GIADA: My friend Berni
proves that

you're never too young
to give back.

When she was just 9 years old,
Berni and her sisters

started a charity
called "KidFlicks."

BERNI: My sisters and I
came across all these movies

that we had that we
just didn't watch anymore,

and then
we thought of our friend

who'd been treated
at Cedars-Sinai,

and she had watched movies
to pass the time.

GIADA: So, the sisters
started collecting DVDs

to donate to children's
hospitals across the country.

BERNI: We get to talk to them,
and their faces would light up

when they see
their favorite movies.

We've donated now
61,600 movies

to 616 hospitals.

You're never really
too young to do something,

and it doesn't take
something huge.

It's just a simple idea
that we had that's turned into

something
bigger than we ever imagined.

So, it's time to get started

on my pan-seared salmon
with tzatziki.

It's buttery and creamy
and absolutely delicious.

Plus, the colors are fantastic.

Four filets of salmon,
center cut.

We're gonna season it
with a little bit of salt

and a little bit of pepper.

Very, very simple seasoning
'cause it's all about the sauce.

And I'm gonna
flip each filet of fish.

Flip these
and season the other side.

And salt and pepper. Okay.

So, now,
start heating up your skillet,

and we're gonna add
a little bit of olive oil.

There we go.

And we are gonna put it --

There we go -- just like this.

So, skin-side up.

That way, when I flip it,

I get a really beautiful crust
on the bottom.

It just looks prettier
when you present it.

There we go.

A few minutes on each side.

We're gonna get started
on my tzatziki.

Some chives, some tarragon,
and some basil.

The chives add
a mild onion flavor to this,

which I really like.

So, 1/4 cup of chives,
and then we're gonna do

a couple tablespoons
of tarragon.

It has a nice,
sort of liquorice flavor.

And tarragon's one of those
herbs I really think is

under-used
and under-appreciated.

So, if you ever see tarragon,
it works beautifully with fish.

Little bit of tarragon
right in there.

Some basil.

We're gonna do
about 1/3 cup of basil.

Fresh, sweet basil.

You can't go wrong
with fresh basil,

that's for sure.

Okay.

So, now that we have
all the herbs,

it's time to add the yogurt.

We're gonna use Greek yogurt

'cause tzatziki
is traditionally a Greek sauce.

is it's nice and thick.

You can see that right here.

So, 1 cup of Greek yogurt.

It's also got a nice tang to it.

We're also gonna add

a couple tablespoons
of mayonnaise.

And I like the mayonnaise

'cause I like the creaminess
that it adds.

Just a couple tablespoons.

And it's got a little bit
of a saltier sort of flavor

than the yogurt.

And then we're gonna add
some white wine vinegar

because we need
a little bit of an acidic bite

to kind of cut through
the creaminess

of the yogurt and the mayo.

So, 1 tablespoon
of white wine vinegar.

There we go.

We're gonna add some salt
and a little bit of pepper.

And we're gonna
mix this all together.

[ Whirs ]

Perfect.

Oh, my gosh,
that smells so good.

Okay. So, that's done.

Now...

...grab some paper towel,

and we're gonna grab a grater,

and we're gonna take
half a cucumber.

This is
a Hot House cucumber.

I don't even peel it.
I just washed it.

We're just gonna grate it
right on the paper towel

so it absorbs
any of the extra moisture.

You want nice, thin,
long strips.

And you just want to
pat dry the cucumber.

Perfect.

And I'm gonna grab my bowl...

and we're just gonna
add all of the cucumber

right in there.

And then we're gonna top it

with the yogurt and herb sauce.

Just add it
right on top of the cucumber.

You can see how nice and thick
and green it is.

And just mix it all together.

And see how the cucumber
gives it a really nice body?

And, now,
I just want to taste it

to make sure
the seasoning is just right.

Mmm, it's good.

Little bit more salt,
little bit more pepper.

That's why you want
to taste it --

make sure it's just right.

So, now,

we're gonna flip our salmon.

Look at that crust.
That is what you want.

And we're gonna
let the salmon cook

a few more minutes
on the other side.

I'm gonna quickly change,
and the ladies should be here.

[ Indistinct conversation ]

GIADA: All right, so,
a little bit, a lot --

What do you want?

AMY: Medium.
Okay.

So, this is a berry-melon tea
with Prosecco.

Oh, delicious.
You just top it off.

I'm gonna
pour you a little Prosecco.

JACQUELINE:
Oh, that looks delicious.

Berni, you're gonna have
a virgin one.

BERNI: Sounds good.

Which is just as delicious,
just so you know.

A little bit of quinoa
over here.

Quinoa is very nutty.
JACQUELINE: Okay.

Now, this looks good.
Salmon.

Pan-fried salmon.
There we go.

There you go.
Perfect.

And that is
a green goddess tzatziki.

All right,
to ladies' empowerment.

All right.
Ladies' empowerment.

Thank you for having us.
There we go.

Thank you.

It's a little bubbly
for you?

Yummy!
Yes!

How's the salmon, ladies?

Oh, the salmon
is really good.

And this can go on
anything you want.

Yeah, any fish, anything.

Oh, I love tzatziki.

Yeah,
I mean, it's just --

You know, with quinoa,

you can cook it
just like you cook rice --

Which, by the way,
is good.

Oh, do you like it?
Yes.

Oh, good! I gave you
a second to try it out.

I was testing it out.

You make it for your kids
all the time, right?

I make it all the time.
It's a great little protein.

They like it?
Yeah.

BERNI: I love it.
It's delicious.

So, it's not just
good for me,

it's good.

It's good all-around.

Now, you think the students
at your school would like it?

Is that
what you were saying?

I was wondering that.

[ Indistinct conversation ]

That's what it is.

There's lots of different roles
that women can have,

and we can all
make a difference

no matter what age
you are.

And, you know, I think
that's what's interesting

and about this lunch.

You can make a difference
in this world,

you just got to care.

You can start at 9 years old
like Berni did

and care about young kids.

You can make a great life
for yourself like Amy did,

and you can
give back to your kids

like you do
at your school.

Well, you know,
I have a saying --

"Why not?"

That's it.
That's right.

And I think that opens up
the door to possibility.

Yeah, it does.

You didn't do so bad.

[ Laughter ]

You know,

I'm still going, though.

[ Laughs ]
Keep going!