In her family’s Connecticut kitchen, a young Marcella would pretend she was on a cooking show, making everything from Sicilian sauce to stuffed artichokes for family dinners. “I was just imitating that,” she says with a laugh.
DiChiara, a marketing director and mother of two who now lives in Franklin, was on a beach in her parents’ hometown of Sicily last summer when she got an Instagram notification: A casting director wanted the self-taught cook, @bostonhomecooking, to appear on a cooking competition show.
As a child, DiChiara and her three siblings spent every summer in Sicily visiting family, and while she shares a variety of recipes on Instagram, like making linguine alle vongole, cooking homemade pasta with her mom, and sharing tips for Sicilian fried zucchini, she’s never cooked competitively (or professionally) before.
By October, DiChiara was heading to Nashville with her family’s Sicilian recipes to film and compete in a PBS show called “The Great American Recipes.”
Season 3 will premiere on June 17, with host Alejandra Ramos returning. According to PBS, “The Recipes” will spotlight eight home cooks from around the U.S., each bringing their family roots and culture into the kitchen. We called DiChiara, 46, back at home after filming to talk about her family, her Sicilian roots and her first cooking show.
question. Why did cooking become such a big part of your family life growing up?
A. I come from a full family background. I have no formal culinary training other than the traditions passed down to me. Cooking was a family affair and we all helped out. From an early age, I helped my mom cook dinner. Our holidays are very traditional, so there are dishes we make every year and recipes that have been passed down from generation to generation.
question. Please give some examples.
A. Cuccuzza stew is one of them. It’s a Sicilian snake squash, a type of zucchini that’s grown in Sicily. But I think most gardeners in Sicily have cuccuzza in their gardens. It’s definitely a St. Joseph’s Day pastry.
question. What is your first memory of family cooking?
A. The smell of garlic and oil fills the house, especially on Sundays when my mom makes Sunday sauce. I still remember when I was five years old and helping my mom make chicken cutlets, dipping the chicken in flour and egg, then breadcrumbs.
question. What did you like when you were 5 years old?
A. result. [Laughs.] I loved food and enjoyed the positive recognition and feedback I got from cooking food that people loved.
question. What was your Sicilian grandparents’ cooking like?
A. There’s a normal kitchen in the house, and then there’s the Campania kitchen, which is a farm kitchen. There’s no electricity, it’s very rustic. You just cook over a coal fire or on the hot lava stones from Mount Etna. When there was activity on the mountain, this was quite common, because the volcanic rocks give the meat a very unique flavor. When it was a viable option, people took advantage of it.
It’s very hot in Sicily. Cooking is team work. The whole island closes down for the afternoon siesta and lunch, which is their main meal of the day.
question. What does your family make for lunch?
A. Summer is all about seafood, so you want to take advantage of what’s in season. Pasta dishes with fish. Lots of pumpkin, tomatoes, eggplant. Grilled swordfish, grilled shrimp. I start with pasta and risotto, then meat, dessert, fruit, coffee. [Laughs.] It’s hard work, but after you eat, you’ll have the best nap ever.
question. Was there anything you wanted to introduce or teach viewers about Sicilian cuisine on the show?
A. There are a lot of stereotypes about Sicily and Italy, so I wanted to showcase the culture through food, as opposed to the stereotypes people have through the media and movies. But really, it was an opportunity to thank my parents for the sacrifices they made, as an immigrant, coming to a new country, not knowing anything about the culture or the language, starting from scratch. I saw this show as an opportunity to thank my parents.
question. What did you enjoy most about being on the show?
A. The best part was meeting the other contestants. I learned a lot. I learned about Asian cuisine from Mei. [Chandran of Malibu, Calif.]. In terms of technique, I’m not very good at it – Tim Dec 23 ’13 at 14:23 [Harris, of Fort Mill, S.C.] He is the best griller ever. I had never even heard of Ajo’s specialty dish, fufu. [Honsou]Originally from Togo.
question. What’s your favorite thing you’ve tried?
A. I had an oxtail stew that was so rich and flavorful, it’s a memory I’ll never forget.
question. What’s your favorite meal to make at home?
A. The hurdles are really high right now. [Laughs.] But I do love seasonality. In the summer, I use vegetables from my garden. My favorite dish is grilled swordfish with mint pistachio pesto. I also love making homemade pasta, which the whole family enjoys.
And of course, my special Sunday sauce. We don’t call it gravy. Gravy is brown and it’s what you put on the turkey. As far as I know, “gravy” isn’t an Italian thing. I think it’s Americanized.
question. What’s your favorite Italian restaurant in Boston?
A. Coppa in the South End has amazing food – believe it or not, we go to Providence more than Boston – Il Massimo is my favorite – any of their linguine and clams or seafood platter pasta dishes are my favorites.
“The Great American Recipe” Season 3 will premiere on PBS on June 17 at 9 p.m.
The interview has been edited and condensed. Lauren Daly can be contacted at email addressShe tweets @laurendaley1.
