Giada's Holiday Handbook (2015–…): Season 1, Episode 7 - Christmas at Giada's - full transcript

♪♪

Yeah!

GIADA: I love the holidays.

And I also love to entertain.

Thank you.
WOMAN: Thanks so much.

Thanks, Giada.

In fact, over the years,

I've gathered together

my favorite recipes and ideas

to create a one-of-a-kind
holiday handbook.

It's filled with pages and pages
of cherished recipes and menus,



unique party themes,
cocktails for every occasion,

and some really fun
decorating ideas.

Whether it's a classic
Thanksgiving dinner, open house,

or Christmas with the kids,

I have everything you need to
make the party truly sparkle.

Cheers, you guys.

MAN: This lamb shank might
last me till next Christmas.

GIADA: Aww.

Today, I'm hosting
Christmas dinner for my family

and making a menu
of classic Italian dishes.

Julian, eat it!
-Yes!

Go, Julian, go!
Go, Julian, go! Go!

Plus, I'm digging
into my handbook

to share
some of my tried-and-true ideas



for giving the party
my own personal touch.

It's my Italian
Christmas dinner.

-Yeah!
-Look at that!

GIADA: And you're invited.

-Merry Christmas!
-Merry Christmas!

GIADA: When it comes
to Christmas dinner,

my grandfather
would always share something

that was special
that happened to him that year.

Whatever was a milestone
in our family's life that year,

he would fold
that into the party.

And so this year
I was thinking I spent a month

in Positano, Italy, digging
deep into my family's history.

And I thought, "Why not share
that with my family?"

Anything that you feel
is big and important,

somehow fold
that into your Christmas, right?

It's a time to reminisce on
what happened during the year,

things that are special to you,

and remember those moments,

cherish those moments.

When it comes
to my classic Christmas dinner,

I used Italy as my inspiration,

but all the parts of Italy,
not just the Amalfi Coast,

which is where I spent most
of my time.

Bring the flavors
and the traditions

from the different regions
of Italy into my menu.

So I'm making
a chocolate candy cane tower --

my twist on a famous
Neapolitan Christmas dessert...

...a hearty and comforting dish
from northern Italy...

...a dramatic holiday dish

that combines the flavors
of north and south.

And my make-ahead tortellini
in Parmesan brodo,

a light soup
to kick off my Italian feast.

In Italy,
traditionally during Christmas,

we do a cake called struffoli.

And they're little dough balls
along with nuts.

And we create this little tower.

I wanted to create something
similar,

but something
a little more whimsical.

Jade loves pancakes.

Make chocolate pancakes
and make a tower out of them.

And then add crushed candy canes
in the middle of each layer,

and then candy canes on top,

so it looks
like a winter wonderland.

So I want to doctor up six cups
of store-bought pancake mix.

And to it, I'm sweetening it
with 1/4 cup of sugar

and 1/2 cup of cocoa powder.

And then we're gonna add
1 teaspoon of vanilla extract,

just to make it
a little bit more flavorful.

It's really fun to use sort
of store-bought ingredients

and just kind of doctor
them up a little bit.

4 cups of water.

And now we're just gonna
whisk it all together.

♪♪

I have a nonstick skillet.

Just as an extra
precautionary step,

I put a little bit
of vegetable oil.

We're gonna start
with a 2-cup pancake,

and then we're gonna get
smaller and smaller and smaller

with each pancake.

That's 1 cup.

And there's 2 cups.

Sprinkle the top
with some mini chocolate chips,

just for some extra chocolate
flavor.

All right, so my pancake
has cooked on one side.

So now what you want to do

is you want to take two
spatulas, get them underneath,

and then you just flip it over.

And then we're gonna
cook the other side,

and then we're gonna
make another pancake,

and it's gonna be
1½ cup measure.

So, little by little, we're
gonna make all our pancakes

for our tower.

♪♪

So I've started on my frosting.

And I've got two 8-ounce
packages of cream cheese

and 1 cup of powdered sugar.

And I'm adding 4 tablespoons
of unsalted butter

at room temperature,
so it's nice and soft.

And a little bit of salt just
to balance out the sweetness.

And we're also gonna add 1/4 cup
of whole milk.

There we go.

We're gonna do 1 teaspoon
of peppermint extract.

This is very intense flavor,

but I think it's gonna work
really nicely

with the chocolate.

Let's mix this all together.

♪♪

There you go.

You want a nice,
smooth consistency.

Grab my cake stand.

And I'm gonna grab
my very first pancake.

I'm gonna grab some frosting.

In the center.

And then with an offset spatula,

start spreading the frosting
from side to side like this.

There we go.

Now, next we're going
to sprinkle

some of these
crushed candy canes, right?

For color.

Next size.

And land it right in the middle.

Grab some frosting.

We're gonna grab
our offset spatula.

Just like this.

And we're gonna go to the outer
borders of the pancake.

And we're gonna sprinkle
some more candy cane

right over the top.

♪♪

I'm gonna put this stick
that I've already measured

all the way down inside
to keep the cake together,

so it doesn't slide.

So now, for the finale,
I take these baby meringues

that you can buy
at the grocery store.

And I kind of just decoratively
put them on top.

You don't have to do this,
but I think it's really fun.

And then you just
kind of put them all over.

You can use chocolate meringues.

You can use whatever kind
of meringues you find.

There we go.

And there --
our chocolate candy cane tower.

Up next, I'm gonna make the main
course to my Christmas dinner --

Barolo-braised lamb shanks.

It's the perfect Christmas
dish -- warm, comforting,

and filled with the flavors
of northern Italy.

Plus some handbook tips
for giving your holiday table

a little extra sparkle.

GIADA: I'm opening up
my holiday handbook

to share
some tried-and-true ideas

for a festive Christmas dinner.

My secret to success
is giving it a personal touch,

so I'm creating a menu
of Italian favorites.

The chocolate candy cane tower
is chilling in the fridge.

Now I'm starting
on my braised lamb shanks.

As the main course
of my Christmas dinner,

I wanted to do something
that's sort of impressive,

and lamb is very big
for us in Italy.

I wanted to do
a Barolo-braised lamb.

Red wine, lots of herbs
that are very warming

and very comforting.

It's cooked low and slow
so it just fills the house

and really the kitchen
with wonderful aromas.

It's something
I can put on in the morning

and just let go for a while.

It's also something
that's really easy

to make for a large crowd.

So I'm gonna start
by cutting up two carrots...

and two pieces of celery.

And the celery
and the carrots --

and we're also gonna add onion
and garlic -- are all sort of

aromatics that give
the lamb shank more flavor.

I basically brown the lamb
shanks with a little bit of salt

in the pan,

and then we'll deglaze it
with some Barolo wine.

Okay.

Then we're gonna
add some fresh oregano

and some rosemary.

We need some garlic
and we need some onion.

So we're gonna
do about three cloves of garlic.

There we go.

Just a little bit
of garlic flavor.

And I'm not even
gonna chop them.

I'm just gonna smash and peel.

That's it.

And let them cook low and slow
with the lamb.

And I love
to serve this over a salad,

so I asked my sister
to bring a salad.

A salad of her choice that
I can lay the lamb right over.

Next, onion.

Now, usually when you brown
a piece of meat,

you take it out,
put it on a baking sheet,

and then pop it back in

after you've added
all the ingredients.

We're gonna cut a couple steps
and make it a little bit faster.

As long
as you use a big enough pan,

you can kind of fit everything
in there.

I feel like for the holidays,

it's all about trying to cut out
as many steps as you can.

And I think sometimes
we get caught up.

But really, sometimes,
there's a few shortcuts.

They make things a lot easier,

but the dishes
are still just as good.

Onion, right on top.

I'm gonna add a little bit
of salt.

And let's add our wine.

So I'm gonna
add a very traditional

northern Italian wine,
very full-bodied, very rich.

Add a cup of Barolo wine
to deglaze it.

And now time for sort
of the secret ingredient

here -- tomato paste.

I'm gonna use 1/4 cup.

It adds sweetness.

It adds richness.

We've got 2½ cups
of chicken broth

that we're gonna cook
the lamb in.

It needs a lot of liquid so it
can slowly soften the meat.

The slower you cook them,

the more the flavor
comes out of the bones,

and it just intensifies
that rich lamb flavor.

So we're gonna cook
this low and slow --

300 degrees for 2 hours

until the meat
just falls off the bone.

When it comes
to my holiday table,

I wanted to give it
a personal touch.

Ciao.
-Ciao, bella.

GIADA: There was
a little ceramic shop

that I visited in Positano

that sold the most
beautiful plates and platters.

I fell in love
with some sea-blue plates

with an octopus pattern.

I thought it would be
the perfect way

to share the experience
with my family.

Plus, I love the juxtaposition
between the rustic bowls

and the fancier
white dinner plates.

I'm big into mixing
and matching.

It's an eclectic look

that takes advantage of what you
might already have in the house.

Napkins are also a simple
and powerful way

to make a statement
and stay true to the theme.

Coming up, Italians always
eat seafood at Christmastime,

and I have a dish
that my family will love.

Plus, a take-home gift

that captures the magic
of the Amalfi Coast.

GIADA: I'm digging
into my holiday handbook

to share some of my go-to ideas

for hosting a family
Christmas dinner.

The secret to success
is giving it a personal touch.

So I've started on a menu
of family favorites.

Now it's time
for my risotto with clams.

I'm not making a pasta.

I made a risotto with clams,

which is very,
like, Amalfi Coast-ish.

But also a little bit
Venetian as well,

because they do a lot
of risottos

because it's still in the north.

I love having a fish alternative
during Christmas.

I find this to be a very elegant
holiday-like dish.

I've sautéed some shallots
in olive oil.

I'm gonna add some garlic.

We're gonna
add some Arborio rice to this.

This is a dish that truly --

I mean, risotto is more
of a northern Italian dish.

Rice is made more in the north
than it is in the south.

You know, people cook -- there
was more rice in the north.

This is more of a southern
Italian dish, in the sense

that it's got clams,
it's got lemon,

it's got parsley.
It's a little bit lighter.

So you just want to toast
the rice.

And to that,

instead of white wine, which is
what you usually add to risotto,

we're going to add 1 cup
of Prosecco.

A little bit more elegant
and a little bit more fun

and festive.

Yeah.
Okay.

We're gonna hold
onto the Prosecco

because I'm gonna use it later
on to cook the clams.

All right.
For 1 cup of Arborio rice,

we're gonna
add slowly 2 cups of broth.

So that way, everything's sort
of the same temperature.

You don't want to add cold broth
to hot rice,

because it sort of shocks
it and then it keeps it

from slowly releasing its normal
creaminess and starchiness.

I'm gonna get started
on my clams.

So, here we go
with a little more Prosecco.

About 1/2 cup.

And to the 1/2 cup
of Prosecco...

we're gonna add some clams.

So I just bought some regular
littleneck clams.

What we're gonna do is
we're gonna steam them

in some Prosecco.

There we go.

All you do is you put it
over medium-high heat.

After about 5 minutes,
they all open up

and they have that wonderful
crisp flavor of the Prosecco.

We're gonna
add a little more broth.

There we go.

I want to get started on
all the toppings for my risotto.

Chop a little bit of parsley.

You want something fresh.

You want something colorful,
right?

Parsley's done.
Let's grab our lemon.

Here we go.

We've got our lemon
that we'll zest in a minute.

We're gonna add more liquid.

♪♪

Give it a nice stir.

Okay.

So, time
to start finishing this off.

We're gonna add some more clams.

And you can get your fishmonger

to just shuck some clams
for you.

The clams plus the juice.

We're gonna add some parsley
on top.

We're gonna
zest some fresh lemon.

Very southern Italian to zest
a fresh lemon over anything.

Perfect.

Now we're gonna also
grate some Parmesan cheese.

Yes, a little Parmesan cheese
on top of the risotto.

There we go.

And a little bit of pancetta
I crisped up earlier.

I just put it
on some paper towel.

It will absorb any extra fat
on it.

Pancetta and the rice
with the briny clams.

It's really good.

And then a couple tablespoons
of butter,

just to finish it off.

Give it a little glisten,
you know?

It looks so pretty.

All right, I got to taste this,

just to make sure that
all the seasoning is correct.

Mmm!

Risotto is done.

Okay.

Let's take a look at our clams.

Oh, yeah, baby.

They have all opened
up beautifully.

Before I serve it,
I'll put all of the clams

on top of the risotto.

But up next,
I'm gonna get started

on an all-time favorite soup

that can be made way
in advance --

my tortellini in brodo.

A classic Italian soup
to kick off the holiday feast.

And a take-home gift
that celebrates my memories

of Positano.

GIADA: I'm opening up
my holiday handbook

to share
some tried-and-true ideas

for a festive Christmas dinner.

My menu is almost ready.

I just need to heat up the soup
and add the tortellini.

A dish
that is very classic Genovese

is the tortellini
in Parmesan brodo,

which is just a broth.

And I like to use
the spinach tortellini

because it looks really pretty
in the broth.

The broth is really easy.

I add an onion,
a head of garlic,

one chopped carrot,
a celery stalk, some oregano,

thyme, and a bay leaf,

and one pound of Parmesan cheese
rinds to a Dutch oven.

I add a little salt,
some water...

...and let the soup simmer for
about an hour and 15 minutes.

Then I strain everything out
so it's just the broth.

One of the ways that you
can make that many dishes

at Christmas is to make
some of the dishes in advance.

I usually freeze it
and then defrost it in a pot

and then add the tortellini in.

Soup is done.

I defrosted my broth
that I made a few days ago.

And now it's simmering nicely.

I'm chopping up some parsley.

So we're just gonna
add the parsley into the brodo.

And we're gonna add one pound
of store-bought tortellini.

You can buy any flavor you like.

I like the spinach kind --

spinach and cheese.

Toss it right
into the simmering broth.

And you just let it cook
for about 4 to 5 minutes

until the tortellini
are cooked through.

I'm gonna go change,

because my family
is gonna be here any minute.

♪♪

Merry Christmas!

-Merry Christmas!
-Buon Natale.

All right, so we're starting
with Parmesan brodo

with tortellini.

-Wow.
-And then guess what?

I have a cake that is going
to blow your socks off, Juju.

Hey, Julian, Julian,
you can pick up the bowl

and you can sip the broth.

It actually tastes better
if you drink it directly

from the glass bowl
than from the spoon.

Great.
That looks amazing.

Let me give you the spoon
so you can get some.

Awesome.

This lamb shank might last me
till next Christmas.

Aww.

Eat more!
Eat more!

Igor and Claudio got
the entire shank with the bone.

I love it!

High-five, buddy.
High-five.

This entire Christmas dinner

is inspired
by our trip to Positano.

-I want to live there.
-I know.

That was the thing Jade said.

"I want to live there."
-Really?

Yeah.
Mm-hmm.

MAN: So, what's the...

Lulu, thanks
for bringing the escarole.

Oh, you're so welcome.
I loved making it.

Silly goose.

Who's ready for dessert?
Just say "I."

-I!
-I!

This is sort of my version
of a struffoli.

This, I think, is sort
of the new tradition.

It is chocolate pancakes.
Ready?

Eight layers.
Delicious!

Is it gonna stand?
Aah! It did!

Wow.
Wow.

That is incredible.
Look at that!

That is amazing.

Julian, eat it!
Go, Julian, go!

Go, Julian, go!
Go, go, go!

MAN: We're gonna start.
We're gonna start.

Aah!

Oh, well.

I was being a little
too precious with it.

No, no, sorry.

So, who wants a present?

For my Christmas gift this year,

I wanted to share Positano
with my family.

So I got everyone
a little something

from my favorite ceramic store.

Little mugs with Buon Natale
on it.

You know, and they're
not over-the-top gifts.

You know, these lemon candies

that you really only
can get from Positano,

and the mug.

It's just that little special
touch of me saying to everybody

in my family, "This is a way

for me to share my experience
with all of you."

And I think that's
what the holidays are about.

-Me!
-Well, pass them down.

Martha, there.
Is that cute?

Aren't they cute?

-Oh!
-Oh!

WOMAN: A mug!

We used to get
these all the time.

Right? Isn't that cute?
See? Isn't that cute?

Buon Natale!
Merry Christmas!