Valerie Bertinelli brings ‘Home Cooking’ to Food Network

Actress and avowed foodie Valerie Bertinelli has been a loyal viewer of Food Network for years, so the idea of having her own show on it seemed like fun.

“I mean, I have it on right now in the house,” she said with a laugh during a recent phone interview. “Sometimes I keep it on without the sound on, and if I see they’re cooking something I’ll turn the sound back on and press the TiVo button and try to make it later.”

Her new effort, “Valerie’s Home Cooking,” premieres Saturday and showcases recipes developed by the one-time star of “Hot in Cleveland” and “One Day at a Time,” which she prepares for her guests, which are mainly family and friends both in and outside the entertainment industry. The range of cuisine, she said, is “everything,” but with a concentration on Italian.

In Saturday’s episode, she welcomes her former “Cleveland” co-stars Betty White, Jane Leeves and Wendie Malick, for whom she prepares Quiche Valerie, Italian tuna salad, grilled romaine with Caesar dressing and, for dessert, panna cotta.

On the grilling of lettuce, Bertinelli said, “It’s supereasy. You’ve got to clean it first and you cut the romaine in half. And then you just put a little bit of butter on the grill. I use the indoor grill but you can use an outdoor grill, too. And then you just lay it down on the cut side down first, let it get a little char on it, turn it over and it kind of gets wilty and it brings out the flavor a little bit more, because romaine doesn’t have a lot of flavor, but it just intensified and gives it more flavor.”

Q&A

What book are you reading?

“‘A God in Ruins’ by Kate Atkinson. It’s such a good book.”

What did you have for dinner last night?

“I made a kale salad with quinoa and a little bit of gorgonzola and some pine nuts and some blueberries. And a little sherry dressing. The key thing about a kale salad, what you really need to do, I use a lacinato because I think it’s better and it’s a deeper, darker green. And when you take all the stems out and you cut it up, blanche it really quickly in some superhot water then take it out, and that way it softens it up a bit. That’s a little trick.”

What is your next

project?

“I’m starting the ‘Kids Baking Championship’ (on Food Network) in three days.”

When was the last vacation you took, where and why?

“The last really great vacation was about five years ago when Tom (Vitale, her husband) and I went to Italy. I so badly want to go back. I can’t believe it’s been five years already. We drove across. … And it was the most amazing two weeks in my life.”