Lidia Bastianich grew up under Tito's communist rule, escaped to a refugee camp in Trieste and finally made it to Queens, where she learned to love Spam, Jell-O and Wonder Bread. She talks about the early years on her grandmother's farm, where she slept on a corn-husk mattress, ate pig's blood sausage and fresh fig jam, and realized that the secret to happiness is having less, not more. Plus, we discover turkey skin ice cream with Salt & Straw's Tyler Malek; discuss the ethics of cooking lobsters; and whip up molletes, Mexico’s take on grilled cheese.

For this week's recipe, molletes, visit: https://www.177milkstreet.com/recipes/molletes-sandwich-beans-cheese-salsa-lunch-mexico-pickles

This week's sponsors:
Scholarships at the New England Culinary Institute are still available for the Fall 2019 semester. Apply today or learn more at www.NECI.edu.

Go to www.KingArthurFlour.com to see King Arthur Flour’s complete line of products.