Giovanna Bellia La Marca was born in Italy came to the United States at the age of 10. She has kept her love for Sicilian and Italian cooking alive through many trips to Italy. Retired after a 20-year career as an art and Italian teacher, she taught cooking classes at the Institute of Culinary Education in New York City and led culinary tours of Arthur Avenue in the Bronx. She also devotes herself to writing, cooking, entertaining, and traveling with her family and hosts a popular YouTube cooking show “Kitchen on the Cliff.” La Marca is also author of Sicilian Feasts and Language and Travel Guide to Sicily, both published by Hippocrene Books. She resides in Cliffside Park, New Jersey.