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"Corn Shucking Party" volunteers needed Tuesday, Sep 16 at 2:30 PM |
Providing accurate and timely information about what matters in Franklin, MA since 2007. * Working in collaboration with Franklin TV and Radio (wfpr.fm) since October 2019 *
Sunday, September 14, 2025
"Corn Shucking Party" volunteers needed Tuesday, Sep 16 at 2:30 PM
Sunday, January 26, 2025
Franklin TV: Cooking in 2025
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Ingredients for Chicken Pot Pie filling, all ready for camera |
Thank you for watching.Thank you for listening to wfpr●fm.And staying informed at Franklin●news.
Get this week's program guide for Franklin.TV and Franklin Public Radio (wfpr.fm) online http://franklin.tv/programguide.pdf
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Watch Listen Read all things that matter in Franklin MA |
Monday, August 12, 2024
Franklin's Marcella DiChiara is one of the 3 Finalists for "The Great American Recipe"
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Marcella DiChiara |
Sunday, June 16, 2024
Boston Globe: "Franklin’s Marcella DiChiara showcases Sicilian culture, cuisine on new season of ‘The Great American Recipe’"
"When Marcella DiChiara was 10, the “typical ‘80s latchkey kid” would come home from school and start cooking.In her family’s Connecticut kitchen, young Marcella would pretend she was on a cooking show while making anything from Sicilian sauces to stuffed artichokes for family dinner. “I would act it out,” she said with a laugh.
Marcella DiChiara Now a Franklin-based marketing director and mother of two, DiChiara was on the beach in her parents’ native Sicily last summer, when she got an Instagram alert. A casting director wanted the self-taught @bostonhomecooking to be on a cooking competition show.Growing up, DiChiara and her three siblings spent every summer in Sicily, visiting family. While she showcases recipes on Instagram — from cooking linguine alle vongole or making homemade pasta with her mother, to sharing her tips for Sicilian fried zucchini — she’d never cooked competitively (or professionally) in her life."
Wednesday, May 22, 2024
Marcella DiChiara talks about her experience on Season 3 of the PBS' "The Great American Recipe" (audio)
FM #1207 = This is the Franklin Matters radio show, number 1207 in the series.
This session of the radio show shares my conversation with Marcella DiChiara, Franklin resident and cook. She was selected to participate in season 3 of the PBS show “The Great American Recipe.” We met to record this conversation virtually Friday, May 17, 2024.
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Marcella DiChiara |
How she got selected
Learning Sicilian cooking from her mother
The show experience (no spoilers)
Queue for the first show June 17 at 9 PM Eastern
The conversation runs about 24 minutes. Let’s listen to my conversation with Marcella. Audio link -> https://franklin-ma-matters.captivate.fm/episode/fm-1207-marcella-dichiara-talks-about-the-great-american-recipe-season-3-05-17-24
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Follow Marcella on Instagram -> https://www.instagram.com/bostonhomecooking/
The Great American Recipe show page -> https://www.pbs.org/show/great-american-recipe/
Press release shared on Franklin MAtters -> https://www.franklinmatters.org/2024/05/franklins-marcella-dichiara-was.html
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We are now producing this in collaboration with Franklin.TV and Franklin Public Radio (wfpr.fm) or 102.9 on the Franklin area radio dial.
This podcast is my public service effort for Franklin but we can't do it alone. We can always use your help.
How can you help?
If you can use the information that you find here, please tell your friends and neighbors
If you don't like something here, please let me know
Through this feedback loop we can continue to make improvements. I thank you for listening.
For additional information, please visit www.franklin.news/ or www.Franklinmatters.org/
If you have questions or comments you can reach me directly at shersteve @ gmail dot com
The music for the intro and exit was provided by Michael Clark and the group "East of Shirley". The piece is titled "Ernesto, manana" c. Michael Clark & Tintype Tunes, 2008 and used with their permission.
I hope you enjoy!
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You can also subscribe and listen to Franklin Matters audio on iTunes or your favorite podcast app; search in "podcasts" for "Franklin Matters"
Tuesday, May 21, 2024
Franklin's Marcella DiChiara was selected to participate in Season 3 of "THE GREAT AMERICAN RECIPE" on PBS
Today (May 7, 2024), PBS announced the eight home cooks from across America who will showcase their culinary talents in Season 3 of THE GREAT AMERICAN RECIPE, the upbeat cooking competition that celebrates the multiculturalism that makes American food so vibrant and delicious. With a wide-ranging variety of cooking styles influenced by their varied backgrounds — from Alaskan to African, Chinese to Sicilian, Southern, German, Mexican and more, Season 3’s contestants represent the unique diversity of American home cooking.
Hosted by Alejandra Ramos, Season 3 of THE GREAT AMERICAN RECIPE features two new judges and a new location. Tim Hollingsworth, award-winning chef and Los Angeles restaurateur, and Francis Lam, host of public radio's "The Splendid Table," join returning host Alejandra Ramos and judge Tiffany Derry in Nashville, Tennessee. Each week, after two challenges, the judges will determine which home cook has the winning dish and, in the final week, the top three will compete for a chance to win this year’s competition. The eight-episode series premieres Mondays, June 17 through August 12, 2024, 9:00-10:00 PM ET (check local listings) on PBS, PBS.org and the PBS App.
Franklin's Marcella DiChiara is one of the Contestants:
Marcella DiChiara (Franklin, Massachusetts) is a first-generation American whose passion for her Sicilian roots comes through in every dish she prepares. Her mother came to the United States with her family at age ten, and her dad immigrated to the United States in his late twenties. Growing up in Connecticut, Marcella spent every summer with her family, including her three siblings, back in Sicily. These experiences informed how she viewed cooking and the importance of family and community gathering around the table. Marcella works as an E-Commerce executive but never misses an opportunity to get in the kitchen and prepare a meal for her husband and two children. She prides herself on cooking traditional Sicilian dishes based on her mother’s recipes while using fresh, Mediterranean-inspired local produce. Marcella’s signature dish is Arancini al Ragu (Risotto Balls with Meat Sauce). |
Meet the other Contestants |
Mae Chandran (Malibu, California) was born in Guangzhou (Canton) in Southern China. At the age of three, she and her mother left China for Hong Kong. When she was eight, Mae left Hong Kong for Fall River, Massachusetts, to join her family, who lived above the Chinese-American restaurant they operated. Although Mae was immersed in the world of cooking (specifically Cantonese cuisine) from a young age, it wasn’t until she met and married her Sri Lankan husband that she began exploring the use of more spices and more "heat" in her recipes. Now with two grown children, Mae and her husband are enjoying retirement while she keeps busy working on their garden, which has been featured in The Malibu Times, making her international award-winning marmalade, and working on her memoirs. Mae’s signature dish is her Cantonese BBQ Chicken made with chicken thighs, Chinese brown bean sauce, hoisin sauce, and sriracha sauce. |
Tim Harris (Fort Mill, South Carolina) grew up living all over the world as a “military brat” until his father retired from a 27-year career in the US Air Force, and the family settled back in the Carolinas when Tim was 12. Influenced by his Dutch mother, as well as his paternal Southern Grandmama’s cooking, Tim developed an appreciation and a taste for many different types of cuisines at an early age. Now married with two children and a career in insurance, Tim uses his cooking to bring people together and spread community and positivity through his dishes. Creative and willing to try anything in the kitchen, he loves to grill, smoke meat, and feature fresh seafood from the Carolinas’ coastal waters along with bold flavors. Tim’s signature dish is his Lowcountry-Style Shrimp and Cheesy Grits.
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Sunday, March 17, 2024
Franklin TV: Linda Waters - We’re Cookin’ Again
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Tim and Linda – cooking it all up in the kitchen |
Linda Waters promotes confidence for college bound students through her cooking sessions, and – well – Not gonna lie. We got to sample and enjoy the tasty results. Linda and Tim whipped up three chicken dishes – ‘Marry Me’ Chicken, Chicken Parm, and Chicken Marsala.
Thanks for listening to 102.9 wfpr●fm.And – as always – thanks for watching
Tuesday, December 5, 2023
Franklin Library: Virtual Baking Demo & Discussion with Chef Erin Jeanne McDowell - Dec 5 at 7 PM
"It's December already!
Add a new baked treat to the festivities!
Dec. 5 @ 7:00 PM over Zoom! https://t.co/iMNOYqQ0e7
Register here -> https://us06web.zoom.us/webinar/register/4216958428196/WN_Gr1EaePCTwSvjkf1fNcxCw
Franklin Library: Virtual Baking Demo & Discussion with Chef Erin Jeanne McDowell - Dec 5 at 7 PM |