Ep 6. Italian Vegetables

In the sixth episode of Everyday Italian season 3, titled "Italian Vegetables," host Giada De Laurentiis dives into the world of Italian vegetable dishes. Throughout the episode, she shares her favorite Italian vegetable recipes that are both healthy and delicious.

The episode begins with Giada explaining the importance of incorporating vegetables into your Italian meal plan. She stresses how Italian cuisine features a variety of vegetable dishes that are full of flavor and nutrition. She then heads to a local farmers market to select the freshest ingredients for her recipes.

Giada's first recipe is for roasted asparagus with Parmesan cheese. She demonstrates how to bake the asparagus in the oven with olive oil, salt, and pepper. Once they are golden brown, she sprinkles freshly grated Parmesan cheese on top for a crispy finish.

Next up is Giada's recipe for stuffed zucchini boats. She suggests using small zucchinis and shreds the flesh to mix with other ingredients such as bread crumbs, garlic, and Italian herbs. She then stuffs the mixture back into the hollowed-out zucchini and bakes them until they are tender and golden.

For her third recipe, Giada shows how to make Italian vegetable soup. She believes that it is the perfect dish to make on a lazy afternoon or a cold winter night. This hearty soup includes lots of vegetables such as carrots, celery, green beans, and zucchini, that simmer in a tomato broth. Towards the end of the cooking process, Giada adds some cannellini beans and short pasta, resulting in a comforting and filling soup.

In the following segment, Giada teaches how to make a classic eggplant Parmesan dish. She layers thin slices of eggplant with marinara sauce, mozzarella cheese, and Parmesan cheese, and traditionally bakes the casserole dish in the oven. Giada recommends baking it until it is bubbling and golden brown, and then letting it cool for a few minutes before serving.

Gnocchi with tomato sauce is next on the menu, and Giada shows how to make these potato dumplings from scratch. In the episode, she shares her recipe for fresh tomato sauce, and demonstrates how to cook the gnocchi until they float to the surface of the boiling water. She then simmers the cooked gnocchi in the tomato sauce until they absorb all of the flavors.

Lastly, Giada reveals her recipe for lemon and herb-marinated vegetables. This dish includes a variety of colorful vegetables such as carrots, zucchini, and bell peppers. Giada marinates the vegetables in a mixture of olive oil, lemon juice, garlic, and herbs for a few hours before grilling them on the barbecue. The dish is perfect as a side dish or as a healthy vegetarian main course.

Throughout the episode, Giada sprinkles helpful tips and advice on how to prepare vegetables in Italian cuisine, from selecting the freshest ingredients to different cooking techniques. Her easy-to-follow recipes and passion for Italian food make this episode a must-watch for any Italian food lover looking to incorporate more vegetables in their diet.