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Dan Pelosi's New Show Features You (Yes, You!)
I’ll take all the GrossyPelosi content, please and thank you.
Dan Pelosi’s signature tagline “I live here now” could not be more fitting for his new gig. Dan—aka GrossyPelosi—is joining Food52 as a Resident and video host of his new series, “The Secret Sauce.” You may know Dan for his famous vodka sauce (known lovingly by GrossyPelosi fans as ‘The Sawce’, his expert taste and eye for design (see his curated Grossery List), or from his delightful and delicious Instagram presence @GrossyPelosi. Now, he’s traveling across the Tri-State area to visit Food52 community members to share their most beloved recipes and cook together.
Dan’s love of food started in his family kitchen, cooking with his Italian- and Portuguese-American parents, grandparents, and great-grandparents (his 100-year-old grandpa Bimpy’s recipe for Giambotta is one of our favorites). While studying abroad in Italy, during college at the Rhode Island School of Design, Dan rekindled his love for cooking and sharing his appreciation for food with others. Fast forward 12 years and Dan is a full-time content creator, recipe developer, and writer, forging a new community through food and social media.
In “The Secret Sauce’s” series premiere, Dan visits Suzanne, a longtime member of the Food52 community, food blogger, and avid home cook who channels her Italian-American heritage into her home cooking. Suzanne teaches Dan to make her recipe for Meatloaf, Plain and Simple, which won Food52’s recipe contest back in 2011. The two are certainly kindred spirits: “I grew up in a kitchen of Italian women telling me what to do, so this is truly my comfort zone,” says Dan as he and Suzanne chop vegetables at her kitchen table. “I did, too,” agrees Suzanne.
The recipe comes from Suzanne’s mother, and was a staple on her childhood table. Her classic meatloaf comes together with a mix of both raw and cooked vegetables, ground pork and beef, and breadcrumbs. But, the best part about making this meatloaf are the sandwiches the next day. Suzanne slathers her meatloaf in ketchup which caramelizes in the oven and locks in moisture, making it the ideal contender for leftovers. Pro tip: Back in elementary school, Suzanne, a self-proclaimed “stickler for crisp lettuce,” would instruct her mother to pack the lettuce for her meatloaf sandwiches in a damp paper towel on the side so she could freshly assemble the sandwich at lunch!
After they’re done cooking, Dan joins Suzanne and her adorable pug Jenna Rose for a walk, during which they tell stories about treasured cooking utensils, and bond over their shared experiences growing up in Italian-American homes where food and cooking was a show of love.
We can’t wait to see what Dan shows us next.
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