“Watermelon..it’s good fruit..you eat..you drink..you wash your face..”

Enrico Caruso

copyright, 2010, Maria Liberati

The most prominent,celebrated fruit of the summer in Italy..watermelon (cocomero)..after a day in the hot summer sun..nothing seems to cool you down or refresh body and mind like a thin slice of cool, juicy watermelon.

I always take a suitcase full of flavors with us wherever we go..and a watermelon is one of my required items.. (would not recommend putting it in a suitcase)…when we go to our country house in the mountains of Abruzzo or for a week at the beach..a watermelon is a necessary item in the months of June, July and August…..

My favorite way to eat a watermelon is cold, after it has been chilled in a bucket of ice water or the refrigerator  for an hour or two (although scientists in Italy have found that  watermelon provides more antioxidants when eaten warm) just sliced.. plain and simple..the way Mother Nature provides it..Eating watermelon is a bit like an opera ( A fine one sung by Caruso maybe) ..you really shouldn’t  just slice and eat. Prep it (put in the fridge to become cold-the overture..now it is ready-the first act is slicing into the watermelon..the second act is eating it ,savoring each bite..the final act-disposing of the rinds…you cna expereince your own opera…

If you want to fool with Mother Nature..here are some recipes :

Fruit  Skewers with Chocolate Nut Sauce

serves 4 people

4 bananas cut into 16 thick slices

1 whole, fresh pineapple cut into 16 squares

1/4 whole watermelon cut into 8 melon balls with a melon baller

2 whole kiwi, peeled, cut into 8 thick slices

1 whole cantaloupe cut into 16 melon balls or pieces

8 tablespoons of crushed hazelnuts

1- 16 ounce dark chocolate bar (of 70-90% cocoa)-melted over double boiler.

8 wooden skewer sticks

Alternate fruit on 8 wooden skewer sticks. Place 2 sticks full of fruit on each plate. Drizzle first-melted chocolate, then sprinkle with crushed hazelnuts, serve.

For more recipes get your copy of the award winning book The Basic Art of Italian Cooking: Holidays & Special Occasions

Sept 9-12 see you at the Hudson Valley Wine Festival in Rhinebeck, NY in Dutchess County Fairgrounds. For info or sponsorship info contact : Sue at info@marialiberati.com or Andrea at: events.ar@gmail.com

Maria

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copyright, 2008, Maria Liberati

 My grandmother (nonna) Maria loved the Italian opera..she loved to sing all the Italian classics and  to this day, when I hear an  opera cd -you can be sure that one of the songs will always bring back memories of her singing at the table after a long dinner…

My grandparents immigrated to the USA and settled in  South Philadelphia. My grandmother even sang with a young Mario Lanza in a local church produced opera there.

But being that nonna loved opera… when I look back on memories of things she did it seems that everything had acts and scenes just like an opera..dinners and making preserves and making her famous biscotti and just about everything.. From the drama of the preparation to the presentation..always almost the same thrill as witnessing an opera-from the overture to the final act..

But I think that one of her grandest ‘operas’ was Thanksgiving dinner. It had many acts..from the grand opening act of a table full of appetizers to the first course which was almost always her scrumptious lasagna made from freshly made pasta dough and freshly made tomato sauce..then the turkey arrived as the second course and everything else arrived seperately as its’ own course..the roasted potatoes with fresh rosemary, the spinach sauteed in garlic and olive oil, then the salad (salad is typically served last in Italian households and in Italy).Then the fresh cheeses and dried meats.  Plates of fresh fruits and nuts..then fresh fruit macedonia (A type of fruit cocktail-made with fresh fruits or fruits she had jarred from the summer)..then the desserts taking stage one after the other..Every course being so special and made with such care that you had to focus on one course at a time..just like at the opera..one act at a time… And nonna was always the ‘diva’ of the opera from it’s preparation to the presentation and the final act…

And I can’t forget about the audience..an audience of 35 or more-family and friends gathered around as many tables as one can fit in a kitchen..old and young and in between all ‘oohed’ and ‘aahed’ at the arrival of another course..just like the beginning of the acts of an opera… And upon the arrival of an act or course the audience became quiet… anxious to savor what was before them..  The tastes were as pleasing to the palate as the sounds of  a great tenor like Pavarotti and Caruso or Mario Lanza or soprano Maria Callas..you don’t want to miss a minute of a memorable performance…

The Opera… and the Final Act

And after dinner and all the plates had been cleared away, the memorable final act was nonna serenading us with one of her opera classics..and nonno may chime in with one of the love songs he serenaded her with when they first met…Oh what a beautiful opera and unfortunately one that I can never see again.

So I am thankful this Thanksgiving not just for being able to have the food on the table but for having had all those special memories that I can look back on. The Thanksgiving Opera… 

If you also have some special Thanksgiving memories..please share…. Memories are special gifts to be shared….

For more memories and recipes get your copy of  bestselling book The Basic Art of Italian Cooking by Maria Liberati at http://www.marialiberati.com or http://stores.lulu.com/marialiberati

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“Mangia Bene, Vivi Bene”
Maria