December 21, 2006 Vol. I Issue 12

Italian Christmas

As you can imagine, Italy is steeped in rich traditions, one of which is the Christmas holiday. Over the centuries the Christmas holiday continued to be celebrated with many and varied customs created to mark the event. What is ironic, of course, is that while Christmas without Christ was once the norm, nowadays religious songs, nativity scenes, and church events all play a critical role in many cultures and religions when celebrating the holiday.

According to About.com, Christmas carols originated in Italy.

“During the thirteenth century, among the early Franciscans, Saint Francis of Assisi introduced the carol, which soon spread all over Europe. He had a particular devotion and affection for the mysteries of the holy childhood of Jesus.

“Saint Francis wrote a Christmas hymn in Latin—Psalmus in Nativitate—but there is no evidence that he composed carols in Italian. His companions and spiritual sons, however, the first Franciscan friars, contributed a large number of Italian Christmas carols. Here is the English translation of one of these thirteenth-century Italian carols. The tune has become very familiar as the theme on which Handel developed his Pastoral Symphony in the Messiah:

“In Bethlehem is born the Holy Child,
“On hay and straw in the winter wild;
“O, my heart is full of mirth
“At Jesus' birth.”

And if you ever wanted to know how to celebrate Christmas in Italian, here is a handy translation for common words:

il Natale — Christmas 
Babbo Natale — Santa Claus 
Buon Natale — Merry Christmas 
il regalo di Natale — Christmas present 
la vigilia di Natale — Christmas Eve 
l'albero di Natale — Christmas tree 
il canto di Natale — Christmas carol 
il biglietto d'auguri — Christmas card 
il presepio — nativity, creche 
Gesù Bambino —the Christ Child or Infant Jesus 
la festa di Santo Stefano — Saint Stephen's Day 
il Capodanno — New Year's Day 
gli auguri di Capodanno — New Year's greeting 
la Befana — kindly old witch who brings children toys on Twelfth Night 
la festa dell'Epifania — Epiphany 
i Re Magi — the Magi, or the Three Kings or Wise Men

Recipes

Here are two recipes that are often used during the holidays in Italy:
Lentil soup is traditionally eaten from Christmas through New Year's Day. In Italy they believe that lentils bring you good luck in the New Year. Italians even make up small muslin bags filled with lentils to place as decoration for the Holiday. On New Year’s Eve, you traditionally eat the soup for good luck, and then after the meal you eat 12 grapes (one for every month of the year) for good luck as well. Be sure to check out the recipe and me in the October, 2006 issue of Healthy Cooking Magazine.

This Italian lentil soup is courtesy of Cooking.com:

Lentil Soup with Tubetti and Bacon Recipe

Vegetables, lentils, and pasta simmer in a broth. The soup is infused with the earthy flavors of bacon and rosemary. We use tubetti, but any small macaroni shape will work as well.

WINE RECOMMENDATION:
The nebbiolo grape produces wine with complex notes including smoke, truffle, and dried red cherry. A light-bodied version, such as one from Valtellina, is an excellent match.

RECIPE INGREDIENTS

¼ lb. slices cut crosswise into 1/2-inch strips
2 carrots, cut into 1-inch pieces
2 onions, cut into 1-inch chunks
2 ribs celery, cut into 1-inch pieces
½ lb mushrooms, sliced
6 cloves garlic, peeled
1 lb lentils (about 2 1/3 cups)
1 1/2 quarts canned low-sodium chicken broth or homemade stock
3 cups water
1 teaspoon dried rosemary, or 1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary
1 cup canned tomatoes in thick puree, chopped
2 teaspoons salt
1/4 teaspoon dried red pepper flakes
1/4 teaspoon fresh-ground black pepper
1/2 cup tubetti or other small macaroni

In a large pot, cook the bacon over moderate heat until crisp. Remove. Pour off all but 2 tablespoons of the fat. Add the carrots, onions, celery, mushrooms, and garlic. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables start to soften, about 5 minutes.

Add the lentils, broth, water, rosemary, tomatoes, salt, red-pepper flakes, black pepper, and bacon. Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for 15 minutes. Add the pasta and simmer until the lentils are tender and the pasta is done, 10 to 15 minutes longer.

VARIATIONS
*Substitute an equal amount of pancetta for the bacon.
*Use thyme instead of rosemary.
*Add shredded spinach or escarole leaves during the last few minutes of cooking.

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The Torte de Panettone recipe was featured in this month's holiday issue of Tastes of Italia magazine. In Italy, panettone is sweet bread made around Christmas, and there is usually so much left it lasts well into the new year! So when I was there 2 years ago, I worked on coming up with a recipe to use leftover panettone with a chef there to be served around the Holidays as well, but is delicious all year long. This recipe will be in my next book, which will be released in October, 2007. So stay tuned!

Upcoming Appearances

March 24, 2007
Williams-Sonoma, Shops at Columbus Circle
10 Columbus Circle
New York, NY 10019
(212) 823-9750

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This book is more than just a cookbook. It is my passion for food and cooking interweaved with stories from my past that make me who I am today. With my easy to follow recipes from a personal tour of Italy, you can experience every fresh fruit macedonia from my family's vineyard. Taste the minted pears and parmigiano antipasto. Italian cooking is never just a recipe, it is the basic art of creating something special from something simple and fresh.

Also, proceeds from the sale of each and every book go to Gilda’s Club. Gilda's Club is a special place where the focus is on living with cancer. And where men, women and children with any kind of cancer and their family members and friends can plan and build life-changing emotional and social support. Gilda's Club is named in honor of Gilda Radner, who, when describing the emotional and social support she received when she had cancer, called for such places to be made available for people with cancer and their families and friends everywhere. Although the Saturday Night Live comedian died in 1989, Gilda's spirit lives on at every Gilda's Club, where members join with other "experts" at living with cancer to both give and receive the benefits of love and laughter through the unique Gilda's Club program. Click here if you’d like to donate directly to the website.

“A fine primer for budding Italian chefs. The entertaining, informative stories that are woven into the cookbook provide a wonderful backdrop to the well-explained basic recipes of Italian cuisine.” 
—MICHAEL DEGEORGIO, executive chef at Il Cortile Restaurant, New York City,
and specialty food consultant 

“A memoir about living in Italy and the pleasures of Italian food that makes a perfect
gift. But the recipes are so delicious, you’ll want to try it first yourself.” 
—CHEF ERHARDT TELL, four-time Cordon Bleu Award winner, television chef and cookbook author

“If you want to get a sense of true authentic Italian food and the flavor of living in the mountains of the untouched regions of Italy, like Abruzzo, not only do I recommend you take the trip, but also that you make Maria Liberati’s The Basic Art of Italian Cooking part of your library.” 
—JIM COLEMAN, host of the PBS television series, Flavors of America, and executive chef at Coleman Restaurant at Normandy Farms