Legacy of Longboater Marcella Hazan receives new acclaim

Ever since The New York Times published a feature about Marcella Hazan's simple yet profound approach to Italian cooking in the 1970s, talk show hosts, reviewers and other outlets have attempted to capture what set such a culinary powerhouse apart.

Hazan, who lived on Longboat Key until her passing in 2013 at 89 years old, left quite the impression on everyone she met in her travels. Some describe her as the strict instructor who would hold a student's hand above hot oil so they could sense what temperature the pan needed to reach to fry the perfect cutlet. Others pictured her as a tough female pioneer in both cuisine and science who would end a meal with a Jack Daniel's, a cigarette, and her keen criticisms and sharp wit. Still others describe her as the "Italian Julia Child" who penned the definitive guides to Italian cuisine for American home cooks, or the chef who introduced palates to now widespread ingredients like balsamic vinegar — a decision she reportedly later regretted because of its overuse and cheap substitutes.

Her prowess in the kitchen is undeniable considering she holds distinctions, including a lifetime achievement award from the James Beard Foundation. Hazan's reach extends far, even to an Italian restaurant based in Bhutan. Her recipes changed lives, spurring tales of wedding proposals inspired by her lemony roast chicken, which she appropriately renamed "engagement chicken."

Those characterizations are all apparently true, but one filmmaker has taken on unraveling and rebuilding the full picture of Hazan.

Six years ago, documentarian Peter Miller learned no one had seriously attempted to capture and convey who Hazan truly was as a primarily self-taught chef who revolutionized Italian cooking in America.

Over the past 30 years, Miller has passionately pursued documentary filmmaking — for which he has earned Emmy and Peabody awards — and good cooking.

When a pantry full of ingredients would stump his wife and him, they asked themselves, "What would Marcella do?"

After cooking homemade ravioli with a wine glass in hand one evening, they asked one another if anyone had ever made a documentary about her.

A surprising "no" led to Miller's next undertaking.

"When Marcella was on TV and getting interviewed, everyone asked her how to cook recipes, but no one really asked her what happened in her life," he said.

He follows her from her upbringing in Cesenatico, Italy, to the start of her life in the 1950s as a married woman living in New York, the epicenter of her new career launch. Hazan would take years at trialing the best way to capture familiar Italian dishes with the bleak ingredients available at booming supermarkets. She would share her insights in a book translated from Italian by her husband, Victor. From there, she went to play an integral role in how America viewed cooking, which Miller retraces through testimonials from fellow chefs and other key people in her life.

The film recently opened the Sarasota Film Festival, selling out with 400 attendees on the first night and spurring an impromptu second showing to close the festival. Attendees applauded the sweeping views of the Key, cheered her career milestones and listened with bated breath as Victor shared stories of their life.

Photo by Dana Kampa

Festival senior programmer Brian Gordon said he was glad to see high attendance this year at "Marcella" and the diverse array of other films this year.

"This was our opening-night film, but it just did so well we had to add a screening," he said.

When asked what prompted such praise from festival-goers, he said, "I think it's just a great story. ... What she's done to influence cooking, that alone, is great. But on top of that, she was a local. It's not surprising it did so well."

At the second showing of the film, Longboat resident Michael Saunders gave her enthusiastic approval.

"I think it was just so Marcella," she said. "That's what I loved about it. The film was Marcella. It just reeked of her presence, her energy, her enthusiasm, her joy in simple, lovely, good cooking."

Miller said the documentary's reception, especially in Sarasota, completely blew him away.

"The sound you're hearing is my chin hitting the floor," he told the Observer. "This is the spiritual presence of Marcella showing up and making this happen. There's something magical happening here, and I don't pretend to understand it, but it's wonderful."

But the renewed acclaim for Hazan's legacy doesn't end there.

Family legacy

The Smithsonian Institution, as part of its 250th anniversary celebration, is unveiling a special exhibit April 24, with one item for every year. This special commemorative showcase includes one of Hazan's cooking utensils.

Her son, Giuliano, and her daughter-in-law, Lael, will represent the family at the unveiling. They have carried on Marcella's love of celebrating food and international inspiration.

Giuliano narrated much of the film, along with his now 96-year-old father. He told the Observer it means everything to him to see his mother celebrated in such a robust way.

Courtesy image

He helped supply Miller with photos and videos for the film, uncovering sentimental documents.

"There were definitely film clips [Miller] ended up using in the movie that I didn't even know existed," Giuliano chuckled. 

Lael added, "There's a wonderful part of the film where Giuliano and his parents are on a gondola that is just touching."

Lael and Giuliano have built impressive respective careers, following in Marcella's footsteps. He has authored five cookbooks, earned a James Beard Award nomination and received the International Association of Culinary Professionals' Cooking Teacher of the Year award.

The duo leads cooking classes from their home in Sarasota, offers immersive culinary experiences abroad in Northern Italy, and runs a local travel agency called Gracious Getaways.

Giuliano was the one who paved the way to Longboat Key, where she moved in 1998 when living in Venice, Italy proved to be a growing challenge.

One of her favorite aspects of living on the Key was being next to the sea again, reminding her of the fishing village of Cesenatico that she first called home.

"When she passed away in 2013, Christiane Amanpour did a piece on CNN, and one of the things she said was that it was amazing how much my mother had impacted the ways Americans cook and eat, who may not even know her name," Giuliano said.

For information about available Italian cooking classes, visit giulianohazan.com, call 941-363-1258 or email info@giulianohazan.com.