Oprah Winfrey’s Favorite Things for 2025: Made in America Spotlight
Oprah Winfrey is once again sharing her favorite picks on World News Tonight with David Muir, marking the fifth consecutive year of this holiday tradition as part of the Made in America Christmas series highlighting American-made products.
“We’re shining a light on some incredible small businesses all across America,” Oprah says, underscoring the goal of the segment.
Among the featured brands this year is the Italian-American eatery Rubirosa, which appears on the list with its Pasta Sampler and Marinara Sauce Gift Set. The gift package combines reginetti, fusilli, and lumache pasta with three jars of Marinara sauce.
Journalist David Muir visited Rubirosa to sample the restaurant’s famed pasta sauces and to meet the team behind the operation. Rubirosa sits in New York City’s Nolita neighborhood and has welcomed guests since 2009.
The restaurant’s ownership lineage connects back to Naples through Maria Pappalardo, who took the helm in 2015 after her father relocated to New York and launched the iconic Joe and Pat’s pizzeria on Staten Island in 1960.
Rubirosa draws on traditional family recipes, a kitchen culture supported by long-tenured staff, with many team members working at the restaurant for more than a decade.
During the segment, Muir tastes Rubirosa’s celebrated marinara and vodka sauces, straight from the kitchen.
Pappalardo explains the marinara’s simple, three-ingredient backbone: plum tomatoes, garlic, oil, with salt and pepper completing the flavor profile. The tomatoes are grown in California, while both the pasta and the canning operations are produced in New York.
For those unable to visit Rubirosa in person, the restaurant’s pasta sauces are available for purchase online.
Explore Oprah’s full 2025 Favorite Things list to see other American-made gifts featured this year:
- The Gourmet Chip Company’s Specialty Custom Trio Gift Box (Asheville, North Carolina)
- Springs Fireplace’s Hot Sauce Trio Gift Set (East Hampton, New York)
- Stingray Spot Remover (Las Vegas, Nevada)
- Gently Soap (Marietta, Georgia)
World News Tonight with David Muir will continue to celebrate American-made holiday gifts throughout December, showcasing small businesses crafting products for the season.
