L'Italo-Americano

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 10, 2016 www.italoamericano.org L'Italo-Americano 5 LOS ANGELES ITALIAN COMMUNITY ricotta cheese and Swiss chard m e l d e d s o d e l i c i o u s l y i n between the perfect blankets of pasta that she made. If this meal didn't stir my passion for cook- ing, I don't know what did. In your early cookbooks, i n c l u d i n g t h e J a m e s B e a r d A w a r d W i n n i n g , M o l t o Italiano: 327 Simple Italian Recipes, you focused specifi- c a l l y o n I t a l i a n c u i s i n e . I n your opinion, what makes it u n i q u e ? A l s o , w h a t ' s y o u r favorite Italian dish? It's what I've always known and loved. I find the same joy in m a k i n g m y t e n t h o u s a n d t h cavatelli as I do with making the first. Anything that anyone else makes is my favorite dish. If I had to pick, though, its Linguine with Clams. Choose the freshest clams and go with a linguine p a s t a t h a t y o u l o v e . I t ' s a s delightful as the ingredients are fresh and follows my motto in cooking to stay simple. Finish the dish with chopped parsley, a pinch of chili flakes. Twirl the pasta with your right hand and sip on a glass of crisp white wine from your left. What's the mission of your M a r i o B a t a l i F o u n d a t i o n (established in 2008)? What are the main challenges faced by the charity organization and its biggest achievements? M a k i n g s u r e c h i l d r e n a r e well read, well fed and well Continued from page 4 cared for. My foundation edu- cates and empowers children and encourages them to go after their dreams – whatever those m a y b e . K i d s a r e n ' t g o i n g t o study more if they are hungry. They aren't going to be inspired to read great novels without a proper education. These prob- lems are not hard to fix, and they need our diligent attention a n d m o s t i m p o r t a n t l y , o u r action. T e l l u s m o r e a b o u t y o u r longstanding partnership with restaurateur Joe Bastianich and your upcoming opening of Eataly L.A.? Do you like Los Angeles' food scene? J o e a n d I g o w a y b a c k t o 1 9 9 8 , w h e n w e f i r s t o p e n e d Babbo together. Eataly LA? We are on cloud nine. This will be our fifth Eataly location and first on the West Coast. I love L.A. During my recent Big American Cookbook book t o u r ' s s t o p i n t h e " c i t y o f angels," I got to chat with my old pal Russ Parson, hang out with my partner Nancy Silverton and our formidable team at Chi Spacca, Pizzeria Mozza, Osteria Mozza and Mozza2Go. I had also the chance to have dinner at one of the best resort i n t h e c o u n t r y , P r o v i d e n c e , where chef/restaurateur Michael Cimarusti is pushing the bound- aries between total luxury and sheer fun. L.A. is a truly hot and fantastic scene these days. Mario Batali loves L.A. and he is going to open there in partnership with restaurateur Joe Bastianich the fifth Eataly location

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