The Easy Snack Valerie's Mom Would Make 'Just Because She Loved Us'
Valerie Bertinelli shares a family recipe that's a perfect treat to make for the people you love.
Rob Pryce
Get a Premium Subscription to the Food Network Kitchen App
Download Food Network Kitchen to sign up and get access to live and on-demand cooking classes, in-app grocery ordering, meal planning, an organized place to save all your recipes and much more.
Any fan of "Valerie's Home Cooking" knows how important family is to Food Network star Valerie Bertinelli. Her family frequently joins her in the kitchen and Valerie credits her beloved grandmother and mom with inspiring her love for cooking.
"I [remember] sitting on the stool watching my Nonnie roll out gnocchi, cappelletti and fry bread, and asking me what I wanted in the fry bread, whether I wanted it sweet or savory, jelly or cheese," Valerie told Food Network when the show premiered in 2015. "I still have her rolling pin and it's probably one of my most-prized possessions. And watching my mom cook three meals without a microwave. She made our breakfast and was making our lunches while we were sitting eating breakfast for school. Then we'd come home to a great home-cooked meal. So, it's always watching masters in the kitchen, which were the women in my life."
Valerie's mom and grandma served up heaps of love in addition to their delicious food — just as Valerie does today. As a tribute to them, she continues to share their recipes with all of us, including in her Mom's Amped-Up Snack Mix.
Valerie has especially happy childhood memories about this super fun and easy treat.
"My mom used to make this for my dad's poker games," Valerie says in her Mom's Amped-Up Snack Mix class on the Food Network Kitchen app. "She would make it for all the parties that she would have in the house. It was always something really fun."
Jason DeCrow
But the snack wasn't only for guests.
"We knew that us kids were being really well behaved when she would make it out of the blue just because she loved us," Valerie says.
On this Mother's Day, consider whipping up a batch for someone you love, too.
For more delicious recipes from the mothers of star chefs, tune into Ellie Krieger's Mom's Turkey Meatloaf class and Michael Solomonov's Mom's Coffee-Braised Brisket class on the Food Network Kitchen app.
Related Links:
