 |
| Baccalà in umido with tomato, onion and olives |
Like many Duosiciliano Americans, my family still keeps the tradition of La Vigilia di Natale, the Southern Italian ritual of eating seafood and eschewing meat on Christmas Eve. We don’t do the so-called Festa dei sette pesci, or “Feast of the Seven Fishes,” but we do eat a variety of aquatic delicacies.
Despite regular and varied claims to authenticity, I believe the “Seven Fish” custom is a recent fabrication. According to my family’s matriarchs there were never a set number of dishes served. We simply ate what we could afford, and what was fresh and available.
Today, we normally have shrimp, calamari, clams, mussels and scungilli (whelk), which all can be prepared in a variety of ways. Capitone fritto alla napoletana (fried eel) use to be the main course, but nowadays, since the passing of my grandparents, the dish has been replaced with aragosta (lobster), ricci di mare (sea urchin), seppia (cuttlefish), or baccalà (salt cod). This year, we enjoyed baccalà in umido (stewed codfish) and mini lobster tails.
Following the fish bonanza, we had three different types of meatless panzerotti, a delicious deep-fried crescent-shaped dough filled with onions and capers; sweet ricotta; and the classic mozzarella and tomato.
Next came fruit, roasted chestnuts, caffè and an assortment of delicious sweets, including homemade cartellate and struffoli, the quintessential Neapolitan Christmas dessert. There is no panettone in my house.
Between courses we played a few games of chess then attended Midnight Mass. Afterward, instead of going straight home, we took our customary passeggiata through Dyker Heights, Brooklyn, to admire the festive Christmas decorations. My family has been doing this for as long as I can remember, though originally it was in East New York, Brooklyn, where my maternal grand- and great-grandparents were from. |
| Insalata di mare |
 |
| Fritto misto di mare |
 |
| Spaghetti alle vongole |
 |
| Sautéed rapini |
 |
| Mini lobster tails |
 |
| Panzerotti |
 |
| Homemade cartellate with fig syrup |
 |
| Homemade Struffoli |
Christmas morning we exchanged presents and went to Mass. Sadly, this year I did not make the Mass at Dawn commemorating Santa Anastasia.
Normally we would make the rounds and visit family and friends until dinnertime, but unfortunately the Covid hysteria has put a damper on that custom. Out of our control, we had to grudgingly settle for phone calls and text messages.
No less extravagant than the Eve, Christmas dinner was a culinary tour de force with plenty of hot and cold antipasti, insalata, baked manicotti and, for the first time ever, a perfectly cooked prime rib. Fruit, dessert and caffè completed the meal. |
| Beautifully decorated High Altar at Holy Innocents Church |
 |
| The crèche at Holy Innocents Church |
 |
| Balthasar, Melchior and Caspar |
 |
(Above & below) Since the Our Lady of Perpetual Help bye-altar
was decorated with the crèche, a temporary shrine to Our Lady
with her Guardian Angel was erected at Holy Innocents |
 |
| Our Lady with her Guardian Angel |
 |
| Thank you Santa! |
 |
| (Above & below) Game night just got more interesting |
 |
| Prosciutto e melone |
 |
| Hot antipasti with polpette di ricotta and focaccia Pugliese |
 |
| Manicotti |
 |
| This year's Christmas entrée was prime rib with salad |
 |
| We had plenty of Southern Italian wine over the weekend |
Not quite finished yet, on December 26, the second day of Christmas, we celebrate St. Stephen's Day (my saintly Confirmation namesake) with leftovers and homemade torrone, a sticky candy made from honey and nuts that dates back to Roman times. I like mine with a glass of Strega or Amaro. |
| Homemade torrone for Santo Stefano |
As always, the ladies outdid themselves and treated us to another memorable Christmas. Buon Natale!
~ Giovanni di Napoli, December 26th, Feast of Santo Stefano primo Martire
Amended for 2021
