Category: Italy

ITALIAN GLOSSARY OF FOODS AND FOOD TERMS

Abbacchio: suckling lamb.

Alla Cacciatora: prepared according to the “hunter’s style,” which means slowly simmered in a sauce of vinegar and water liberal with garlic, minced anchovies, rosemary, and sage.

Alla Fiorentina: prepared according to the Florentine style, which often (but not always) means that spinach is included.

Bagna Cauda: literally, a “warm bath.” Simmered mixture of olive oil, butter, garlic, anchovies, and sometimes other ingredients such as cream. A specialty of Piedmont and Turin.

Bottiglierie: a wine shop that not only sells wines of all types but also often serves soups, all to the accompaniment of wandering musicians and troubadours.

Brodetto: fish soup or chowder with as many variations as there are soup pots. Yet each Brodetto is made with fish and usually served with bread, the local variations depending on the available fish and seafood.

Bruschetta: that’s what they call it in Rome; in Tuscany they call it Fettunta. By any name, it began as stale bread, rubbed with garlic and drizzled with newly pressed olive oil. More recently it has undergone a metamorphosis to become a popular appetizer topped with finely cubed fresh vegetables, freshly chopped herbs, and maybe a drift of cheese, served warm and crispy from the oven.

Budini: puddings.

Caffe: a coffee shop that also serves as a meeting place, club, or office. Also a place to read a paper, write a letter, or just watch people. Specialty coffees (caffe latte, cappuccino, espresso, iced coffee) are served with sweets or snacks.

Caffe Latte: equal amounts of hot coffee and hot milk. Usually served as a morning beverage.

Cannelloni: tube pasta or crepes that are stuffed with meat then rolled and sauced and baked with cheese. Specialty of Rome.

Cannoli: Sicilian dessert of thin fried pastry tubes stuffed with a creamy filling based on Ricotta cheese and rich with fruits, nuts, chocolate, etc., then finished with a dusting of sugar.

Caponata: a Sicilian dish of chilled and well-seasoned eggplant, anchovies, and capers served as a side dish or appetizer.

Cappuccino: frothy hot coffee prepared from steamed milk and espresso, served with whipped cream and a sprinkle of cinnamon or cocoa. It’s named for the light brown color of the robes of the Capuchin monks.

Carciofi alla Guidia: the Jewish style of cooking artichokes – flattened and fried. A specialty of Rome.

Cassata: the traditional Sicilian cheesecake made from Ricotta cheese and blended with grated chocolate and chopped candied fruits then chilled in a mold. Cassata Gelata is the ice cream version prepared in a special metal mold and consists of an outer layer of rich ice cream and an inner layer of softer cream and chopped fruits.

Con le Vongole: served with clam sauce.

Costolette alla Milanese: a crisp breaded veal cutlet fried in butter. Sounds Austrian, but it is believed that this dish was introduced into Vienna by the Austrian General Joseph Radetz who discovered it in Milan in the 1800s.

Crostini: literally “toasted bread,” but there are many versions that vary from alternating slices of bread and cheese grilled on skewers to toasted bread slices over which a sauce is poured, cheese is melted, etc. Used as a snack or appetizer.

Espresso: prepared by forcing steam through finely ground black coffee producing a strong richly flavored drink. Usually served black in small cups.

Fagioli: beans. One of Italy’s staples.

Fegatelli: a Renaissance dish prepared by rolling a fine membrane around a chopped-liver stuffing then slicing and serving as an appetizer.

Focaccia: another bread of Southern Italy, reputedly introduced by the Greeks. Flatly shaped yeast dough in a large oval or square liberally sprinkled with available herbs and olive oil.

Frito Misto: literally means “mixed fried foods,” and includes small morsels of cooked vegetables, fish, seafood or meats or even left-over rice or noodles that are hound with eggs – all deep-fried then served piping hot.

Gelateria: ice cream shops, the first believed to have been in Tuscany in the 1500s.

Gnocchi: a specialty of Rome but prepared all over Italy. A dough is made from flour and eggs with either semolina, polenta, or potatoes, then formed into small shapes and poached. To finish, they are drizzled with melted butter and sprinkled with cheese and oven-baked until bubbling hot. Street vendors serve a snack called Bom-Bolini, which are crumb-crusted and deep-fried Gnocchi.

Gremolata: finely minced fresh garlic, fresh parsley, and grated lemon rind.

Grissini: thin crisp bread sticks believed to have originated in Piedmont.

Minestre or Minestrone: a hearty vegetable soup with pasta and/or beans that can be a whole meal and which the Genoese claim to have invented. Often served with a spoonful of Pesto Sauce.

Osso Bucco: a typically Milanese dish of veal shanks simmered in a sauce of wine, tomatoes, and onions then served with Risotto Milanese and garnished with a sprinkling of Gremolata.

Osteria: a quick-snack shop.

Panettone: a light egg-rich yeast dough studded with chopped fruits and nuts and baked in a tall cylindrical mold. Commonly eaten throughout Christmas festivities for breakfast with coffee but also enjoyed anytime. Believed to have originated in Northern Italy.

Polenta: thick cornmeal prepared in a copper pot then served as the base for any meal. Traditionally cooked fresh daily in Milanese kitchens.

Porchetta: spit-roasted suckling pig.

Ravioli: typical Genoese dish of small squares of pasta dough filled like little pillows with a meat or vegetable mixture then coated with sauce or melted butter to serve. Prepared in many versions (both sweet and savory) throughout Italy and sometimes with different names.

Risi a Bisi: the Venetian Risotto of rice and peas cooked in a rich stock as a side dish of soup yet always eaten with a fork.

Risotto: the Northern Italian way of preparing rice – well cooked and well flavored, usually in a broth with added cream and butter.

Saltimbocca: literally, “jump in the mouth.” Slices of ham and veal seasoned with fresh sage and browned in butter and wine.

Sambuca: Rome’s favorite clear anise liqueur served after dinner with a coffee bean floating on top to be crunched while sipping.

Spaghetti alla Carbonara: hot pasta is tossed with beaten raw eggs, crumbled salt pork or crisp bacon and grated cheese.

Stufato: stewed beef and tomatoes.

Torta Pasqualina: a layered “pie” of buttery pastry and cheese-spinach filling, similar to the Balkan cheese pies made with phyllo pastry and the Greek Spanakopita.

Zabaglione: a soft warm custard of eggs and Marsala wine served in tall glasses and eaten with a spoon.

Zuppa alla Pavese: Milan’s soup of bouillon afloat with toast carrying a poached egg and dusted with Parmesan cheese.

Zuppa Inglese: literally “English soup” but it is neither English nor a soup and its name may be a gentle aspersion. One thing is certain: it is a delicious dessert of layered rum-soaked cake and custard.

THE DIFFERENT TYPICAL FOODS OF VENETO IN ITALY

VENETO

The great staples of this province include polenta, radicchio rosso (a reddish form of chicory or curly endive), rice, and fish of all kinds including the imported salt cod.

It was in Venice that the first sack of dried corn reputedly was unloaded in Italy, and Venetians have retained their affection for it ever since. It was also in Venice where the first fork and cloth serviette accompanied elegant dinners while the rest of the world ate with their fingers and wiped them on their clothes and anything else available. The height of Venice’s glory was in the 1400s – like an elegant lady with the confidence and breeding that comes from 300 years of supremacy as a cultured city, intellectual center, and merchant harbor to much of Europe. Not surprisingly, her sophistication encouraged a cosmopolitan cuisine and to this day, dishes such as sausages and sauerkraut, casseroles of salt cods, stews of offal, turkey, and goose are reminiscent of other European and Mediterranean lands.

While almost every region of Italy and each small village delights in their own version of biscotti, it is believed that this twice-baked crisp little bread originated from the standard (plain) Venetian pani biscotti. From earliest times the large round dried flatbreads and smaller crisp breads were considered essential food for journeys even by Marco Polo and Christopher Columbus.

Typically too, the classic dishes of the region are prepared with loving precision. Polenta may be served hot or cold, boiled, roasted, sliced and fried, layered with fish, cheeses, meats or vegetables into baked dishes, or served from a wooden slab or copper pan. Fish is cooked principally in one of three ways: poached in a broth, deep-fried in oil, or grilled quickly over red-hot charcoal. Although rice is widely used it is not prepared as in Lombardy. No saffron is used here nor is rice eaten by itself. Rather, it is cooked and served with a variety of other ingredients which may include meats, fish or seafood, or even beans or raisins. Most famous is risi e bisi, a famed first course of cooked rice with tiny green peas, grated cheese, and bits of bacon or ham. Flat noodles accompany many meat dishes and may also be served with grated cheese as a first course. Game and all types of meats and sausages abound, and frequently it is the added grated cheese that distinguishes Venetian dishes from those of Austria, Germany, or Hungary.

Cabbage, zucchini, fennel, squash of all types, potatoes (especially in the form of gnocchi) are all used in abundance, together with tomatoes, peppers, onions, and other common vegetables.

Some of the more exotic dishes of this region include: sopa coada, a soup made of young pigeon squabs; arrosto di maiale al latte, browned pork flavored with rosemary and garlic then stewed in milk; and capon a la canevera, capon stuffed with beef and guinea-fowl meat then placed in a pig’s bladder and sewn up with a bamboo pole as the vent – the bladder is discarded after boiling and the meat is cut for serving.

EMILIO-ROMAGNA AND LIGURIA

The main city of Liguria on Italy’s north-western coast is Genoa. Often called the richest city in Italy, Genoa is also known for its conservative elegance and fine taste in everything from small cars to discerning food. Basil grown in tiny pots on windowsills represents not only the wild weed that grows in every meadow, but also a beloved flavor. Genoa’s traditional sauce pesto is prepared from generous amounts of fresh green basil, pine nuts or walnuts, Parmesan cheese, and olive oil. Garlic may or may not be an ingredient in the pureed sauce that is served over pasta. Traditionally, mortar and pestle are used to pound the herb and nuts into a smooth fine paste, but electric blenders are also used.

The focacce of this region are likely to be dimpled and studded with anything from sea salt to fresh herbs, olives, or Gorgonzola thinned with a little fresh cream and sprinkled with thyme.

Fish and vegetables are so popular that they blend together to form many of the most famous classic dishes of the area. One is burrida, in which a variety of fish (rospo or frogfish, dogfish, mackerel, octopus, eels, etc.) is sautéed in a flavorful sauce of oil, garlic, parsley, and tomatoes, then thickened with pounded walnuts, blended with white wine and finally served in its cooking pot with toasted bread. Ciuppin is another fish soup but prepared with pureed mixed fish.

Liguria is also famed as the area where ravioli was invented, where many tempting candies and sweets are prepared daily, and where fine wines complement each meal.

Salami, mortadella, bologna, and zamponi represent only a few of the famed sausages varying from bland to hot and spicy that prove the popularity and ingenuity of pork in the region of Emilio-Romagna. Parma is believed to be the area that originated Parmesan cheese. Not only Parmesan goes with pasta, but also the famed Bolognese sauce called ragu prepared from a blend of well-cooked vegetables, mushrooms, and meats. The most famed pasta of the region are the many versions of tortellini (ladies’ navels). In general the cookery of the area is considered to be the “fattest” of Italy: rich and well seasoned with spices and garlic.

LOMBARDY

The city of Milan, bustling and industrialized, dominates the plains of Lombardy. In the 1300s foods were sometimes gilded in the belief that gold was curative; the poor could not imitate this except by the use of saffron and the generous addition of golden butter to as many dishes as possible. This tradition is common in many Milanese dishes such as risotto and costolette alla milanese (butter-fried veal cutlets). Another famed dish is a version of minestrone which includes toasted bread, poached eggs, and a sprinkling of cheese with the soup poured over top. Buseca (tripe with white beans), vitello tonnato (cold roasted veal served with tuna sauce), and osso bucco with risotto (veal shanks braised then served with a gremolata of minced garlic, parsley, and grated lemon rind) are such beloved dishes that they are part of fine international cuisine and are found in countless cookbooks.

Panettone, the richly sweet yeast cake eaten throughout Italy both for Christmas and Easter festivities, is humorously believed to have been originated in Milan by a baker called Tony whose delighted customers then continued to ask for “panne Tony” (Tony’s bread) but other provinces claim it too. Gorgonzola, the creamy-rich, blue-veined cheese also known worldwide, is the product of Lombardy. Many other cheeses are produced hut are mostly used locally.

Lombardy wines include: Cortese, Barbera, Montelio, Sasella, and many others.

PIEDMONT

White truffles, fonduta, game dishes, risotto, and enticingly sweet desserts are the famous specialties of the region. So insistent are the Piedmontese on the freshness of produce that most families use the fresh-picked seasonal vegetables and herbs from their own backyard gardens. Many varieties of mushrooms are used and the special vegetables include cardi, similar to an artichoke in flavor but resembling celery and delicate asparagus. Grapes, strawberries, and small russet pears are grown throughout the area, while cherries come from Pecetto or Ceresolo, and peaches from Casale. In the rice-growing areas, carp is raised in the water of the paddies, and tench (a fish of the carp family) and frogs abound. Rane dorate is a specialty of skinned frogs, flour-dipped then fried in olive oil. In mountain regions, wild goat, the white hare, wild boar, and chamois await the hunter.

Pasta is used but rice is preferred, and rich and satisfying dishes are made from polenta. Wild and cultivated herbs are used with a generous hand and, in this area, so is garlic. One of the famed dishes redolent of garlic is bagna cauda. A selection of fresh crisp vegetables like celery, cardoons, green peppers, and grissini are dipped into a hot pot of blended olive oil, butter, anchovies, and garlic. Bagna cauda may be a first course – as rice, pasta, or polenta usually are – or it may be the entire meal.

The area is also known for its production of fine cheeses: the spicy Robiole d’Alba, crusty Toma Veja, and aged yellow Fontina, whose quick-melting properties are enjoyed in fondata or fonduta, which is served over bread, rice, or polenta. Cream, milk, and butter are found everywhere and used to add rich flavor and light texture whenever possible.

Sweets and desserts are almost an art form: pastry shops resemble exclusive jewelry shops and the Piedmontese often enjoy leisurely snacks of pastries and tea. In mountain areas sugar is considered important to provide energy and calories, in case anyone needs an excuse to nibble candied chestnuts, macaroons, caramelles, gianduiotti (hazelnut chocolate), and turret, the plain cookies baked in horseshoe shapes. Ladyfingers, anise cookies, and the famed fried cookies known as cenci or bugie delight every taste. Many sweet puddings and egg custards, especially zabaglione, a wine custard of Marsala and whipped eggs, are believed to have originated in this area. The long thin crisp bread sticks called grissini are thought to have been created by a Turinese baker to tempt the flagging appetite of a young prince.

This region claims also to have invented vermouth. Some of the finest red wines come from this region as well: Barolo del Piemonte, Barbera, Grignolino, Friesa (semi-sparkling with low alcohol content), Gattinara and Dolce della Langhe. Sparkling wines include Asti Spumante (white) and Muscato d’Asti (sweetly sparkling). Cortese is the best of the local white wines served dry and chilled. Commonly a digestivo is offered after a meal: Grappa del Piemonte, Genepy (mountain herb liqueur), or Acqua del Po.

ROME-LAZIO

While most of Italy balances its cooking between butter and olive oil, Rome prefers matured pork fat called strutto. In other ways Rome is different too: vegetables grown in the surrounding volcanic soil are said to have a distinct taste, and sheep, suckling lamb, and suckling kid (slaughtered often when only weeks old) become specialty dishes. Romans take
their traditions very seriously. With a common saying, “Bread and water are fit for a dog,” every home and every small restaurant proudly serves the very best, fully confident that their tradition truly is the best. With knowing skills the Romans do indeed select the best from north and south and create from it a distinctively Roman cuisine.

Pizzas are everywhere, but Rome has an elegantly simple one that defies imitation. Gently warmed from the oven, the pizza alla Roma is stretched to six feet long before being baked and finished with brushings of olive oil, chopped garlic, and rosemary or maybe just a blush of fresh chopped tomatoes graced with olive oil and pepper.

Crostini (toasted bread and cheese) takes on distinctive Roman flavor because it is made with Roman Provatura, spaghetti all amatriciana is a spaghetti tossed with a delicate sauce of peeled and seeded tomatoes caressed with onion and bacon; suppli are cheese croquettes filled with a mixture of northern rice, meats, and dried mushrooms; and stufatino is a Roman version of Milan’s stufato (beef and tomatoes), but cooked in lard and garnished with cardoons. Tripe is beloved in many dishes throughout Italy but Rome’s version is cooked with either meat gravy or tomato sauce, then served with grated cheese touched with minced fresh mint. Carciofi alla Giudia dates from ancient times and bases its tenderness on the quality of artichokes grown near Rome.

Roman cuisine also includes batter-fried squash flowers, stuffed zucchini, tomatoes, peppers and squashes; casseroles of simmered vegetables; fava beans and white beans served as thick soups or hearty casseroles with cheese or sausages – and if the fresh tenderness of young vegetables are not enough, there is the haunting flavor of strutto, the matured pork fat used in so many dishes and heightened with sage, rosemary, garlic, and anchovy paste.

Specialties of Rome include cheesecakes and filled pastries made from Ricotta; fruit tarts prepared with visciole (sour cherry jam); tiny cookies shaped like beans (favi dolce), and crisp fritters. Each of the many villages around Rome produces its own famed wines and most of the Vine Dei Castelli are white.

ABOUT ITALIAN FOOD AND CULTURE

The profoundly civilizing influences of Italian kitchens and table manners touch almost everyone. Even a brief examination of Italian cuisine offers convincing evidence that Italy’s mission of civilizing the world may have had its deepest impact on gastronomy. All of this seemed to have been predicted in 100 C.E., when Pliny the Elder claimed Italy “mother of all nations with a mission to civilize mankind” and 1,200 years later, Dante, too, spoke of a politically united Italy that would have a “special place as the sacred garden of Christendom.” The universalism of Imperial Rome was one thing, but the sense of unity and mission collapsed with the Western Empire in the late 400s C.E.

When the Romans conquered the Greeks in 197 C.E., they enlarged their empire and profoundly enriched their culture in the form of arts and architecture, literature and philosophy. Greek became more than ever before the language of the literate and the language of international trade. Therefore, educated Romans, unlike the Greeks and unlike most early peoples, had to learn to use a second language. Early Romans had learned to evaporate seawater to provide salt for their sheep and this skill became a profitable export to the Greeks in the South and the Etruscans in the North. In fact, the valuable salt exports increased with the expansion of the Roman Empire, but the language of trade was Greek.

Despite the many tales of exotic, gargantuan Roman feasts, all classes of early Romans valued frugality and simplicity and nowhere were these values more evident than in their food customs. Wheat, the staple food, was served at jentaculum (the early light meal) in the form of wheat pancakes, biscuits or breads, then served again at cena (the main meal) in the form of a boiled gruel or porridge. Milk, honey olives, and dates would accompany the main dish at either meal. Sometimes the wealthy would add gustato or promulsio – hors d’oeuvres of salads, radishes, mushrooms, eggs, oysters, or sardines – to the basic typical meal, and desserts of honeyed cakes and fruits would complete the special meal.

While puls or pulmentum was the staple porridge-like dish for all, early Romans also enjoyed cottage cheese, the use of iron kettles to boil their mutton, types of dumplings called gnocchi, even omelets and cheesecakes. Some of the earliest Roman kitchens made knowing use of bakery molds, cutting knives and round chopping knives, cooking spoons and measuring spoons, mortar and pestle. Small portable brick ovens were used for keeping foods hot in the dining area. An arrangement of one pot inside another and set in hot water
was used to keep other foods warm but not cooking. There can be little doubt that this latter technique was the forerunner of the French bain-marie and the western double boiler.

Dishes chilled with snow, vessels treated with pitch to keep foods cool, inspectors to check the freshness of meats in butcher shops, commercial bakers, and even commercially prepared seasonings were all familiar. Garum or liquamen was one such seasoning prepared from fish and salt; defrutum was a syrup made from wine and honey or grapes and honey; agrodolce (said to have been developed by Apicius) was a sweet-sour sauce prepared in many ways. Honey and vinegar were widely used but so was silphium or laserpitium, a prized flavoring prepared from asafetida (a sour-tasting spice with a strong aroma used in Indian cookery).

By 200 C.E. all these foods, seasonings, and techniques were commonplace for the Romans. Gradually the commercial bakeries became so widespread and dependable that all but the very poor relied on them for fresh daily baked goods. Those who could not afford to buy breads relied on the old gruels and porridges. Small stones pressed into larger concave stones probably represent the earliest forms of grinding, to be followed by mortar and pestle, but it was about 200 C.E. that a small hand mill called a mola versatilis or quern became a prized item in Roman kitchens.

Apples were plentiful and popular but it took later conquests to bring the taste (and the plants) for cherry trees home from Asia. Apricots and peaches were brought from Armenia and Persia, melons from both Persia and areas of North Africa, and dates from Africa. Rome’s returning Asiatic armies also brought back sophisticated ideas of seasoning and tales of Oriental dishes. By the 800s C.E., Islamic conquests began to influence European foods. The Saracens are reputed to have introduced spinach (the special ingredient in so many Florentine dishes) to Italy from its native Persia. Many unusual desserts were also introduced at this time, most notably gelati, the whole range of ice creams and sherbets that the Muslims had learned from the Persians and East Indians. There is evidence that the earliest record of frozen desserts and ice- or snow-chilled foods accrue to the Chinese. Although the Arabs knew about sugar cultivation, they found it difficult to introduce it successfully.

The Romans also introduced culinary ideas to other lands. From earliest times, the Greeks thought of the Romans as a wine-producing nation and learned from them wine fermentation and processing techniques as well as the drinking of wine diluted with water and often sweetened with honey. Most of the world had been content to dine on spit-roasted meats, but the Romans seem to have introduced the notion of boiling and stewing in kettles. Various boiled greens (many considered weeds today) were commonly used in many lands, but the Romans brought with them the conviction that cabbage was worth cultivating since it contained medicinal properties. (Yet cabbage prepared in many ways – even fermented like Germany’s sauerkraut and Korea’s kimchi – predates Roman times as it was known and used in early China.) In fact, Europe took the Romans word that oysters were delicious and even set about cultivating them in many lands. Similarly, edible snails were introduced to European palates by the Romans and remain a French favorite today.

The Roman belief in the efficacy of almonds as an aid to sobriety may have been the forerunner of salted almonds as a cocktail snack in many parts of the world, especially Spain. Central Europe’s penchant for sausages in endless variety may have derived from the many types of spiced sausages, stuffed meats and fish that were common at the time of Apicius, a gastronome of the 1st century C.E., who wrote the first non-Asian cookbook.

At the time of the Crusades (around 1000 C.E.) some new culinary touches were introduced to Italy and some old ones revived. Indian salt was the name given to sugar, used at first as a condiment and later as a base for desserts and confections. Believed to have originated near Jerusalem and named for the Saracens, buckwheat (called sarracin in French, sarraceno in Spanish, and saraceno in Italian) was brought back by the Crusaders. Use of many spices was revived and the use of the tangy lemon was reintroduced to replace the green grapes and other fruits that had been used both to flavor and to tenderize meats. The present-day carciofi alla Giudia (literally “artichokes in the Jewish way”) may have dated from the Crusades or from even earlier times when the Jews were brought back to Rome as slaves. In any case, the Italian enjoyment of carciofo remains.

Encouraged by the meal styles they had enjoyed abroad, the Crusaders are also responsible for the return of the meal pattern including appetizer, main course, and dessert. The prevailing custom in the Middle East of serving foods on large heaped platters also found a place on many Italian tables. The question of the origin of pasta seems to have no ready answer. Once again some of the earliest references to types of noodles come from Chinese sources (wheat is the North China staple and noodles are the most popular form of preparation). Some believe that it was the Venetian explorer Marco Polo who brought dried noodles to Italy Others believe that Italians were eating forms of pasta before Marco Polo but its importance and use were limited. What cannot be argued is that the varieties of pasta today are nowhere greater than in Italy.

The next most significant period in Italy’s culinary history occurred in the late 1400s and 1500s when the country’s great cities were the merchant centers of the world and her gastronomic achievements had no competitors. The gluttony accredited to ancient Roman leaders had long given way to a general inclination for simplicity and frugality, so much so that in many areas, traditional favorites would have been lost to succeeding generations were it not for the monasteries that preserved the great recipes and encouraged their monks to interpret them with taste. Sugar, coffee, and ice cream were introduced to the rest of Europe via Venice, together with many of the culinary details that had long been commonplace in Italian kitchens (stewing, frying, elaborate breads and baked goods and efficient utensils).

At the same time, growing world explorations were bringing back to Europe New World products such as corn, red and green peppers, varieties of beans, turkeys, and potatoes (of limited popularity in Italy). Most significantly, the pomo d’oro (golden apple) – the name given to the early tomato which was of a yellow variety – was lifted to gastronomic heights in Southern Italy’s ubiquitous tomato sauces. But there is also some evidence that original Italian tomatoes were started from seeds brought back from a missionary trip to China by Monk Serenio in the Middle Ages.

While it may seem from the foregoing that food and food customs in Italy are the same throughout the country, this is not true. Nor are the Italians themselves homogeneous. Unfortunately, however, the predominating western view of Italy, Italian food, and Italians has been a blur of dark hair, emotional personalities, and pasta, tomato sauce, garlic, and wine. In fact, the peoples of Italy developed from early migrations of tribes throughout Europe and even Asia and North Africa. Italians, like other people, have red hair (from the northern region), may have gentle personalities, and enjoy a far greater variety of food than just pasta! And while geography played some part in isolating areas from each other, much more important was the part played by the battles between the popes and the emperors, each courting towns and eventually favoring development of northern and central Italy as almost independent states.

The fragmentation of the states left Italy vulnerable to powerful outside influences: French, Spanish and, later, Austrian. Most especially, Southern Italy, Sicily, and Sardinia fell under Spanish control and exploitation for 250 years (from 1559 to the early 1800s), which resulted in great part in the poverty, pestilence, disease, and famine relieved only by the great charities and hospitals run by religious orders.

The Spanish oppression of Southern Italy had many other effects as well. The debt-crushed peasants rebelled by forming secret societies and strongly emphasizing the power of the family unit, both of which exist to this day As recently as 1958, Edwin Banfield’s study of Southern Italy confirmed the prevalent attitudes of “family first and family against everything else,” and Luigi Barzini takes care to explain this same phenomenon by stating that mafioso (with a small “m”) means “… a subtle art of promoting one’s own interests without killing anyone,” while Mafioso (with a capital “M”) includes everything else.

Probably from the influence of the Saracens and their Muslim ideals of womanhood, as well as the later influence of the Spanish, Southern Italians are possessively proud of their women, and consider honor a matter of life and death. Also in keeping with Mediterranean influence, the people of the South take a leisurely view of time in general and punctuality in particular, enjoy afternoon siestas, and spell happiness with the conviviality of boisterous friends and an open bottle of wine.

In 1713, Italy came under Austrian influence but was not isolated from the effects of the French Revolution. These events bound the Northern Italians in a risorgimento of culture, stressing the commonality of all of Italy’s great cultural heritage and hoping for political unity. Even the proclamation of King Victor Emanuel of Piedmont as King of Italy in 1861 could neither allay the South’s economic distress nor cement the cleavage between North and South.

Northern Italy remained strongly influenced culturally economically, and politically by Europe, and later construction of railway tunnels in the mountains increased this influence. The peoples themselves became diffused with Germans, French, Austrians, and Slays, gave their women considerable freedom, were too busy to consider siestas (nor did the climate warrant the rest periods), and cultivated conservative but elegant taste in everything from manners and clothing to food and wine.

DOMESTIC LIFE AND REGIONAL SPECIALTIES IN ITALY

DOMESTIC LIFE

Most of Italian daily life from ancient times to today is spent in the streets and squares of cities, towns, and villages. Home is the place to eat dinner hut the streets and squares truly represent Italian life. The squares provide fountains and wells, markets and a place to gossip, a playground for the children and a place to see and he seen. Early Roman kitchens, with their cooking hearths, metal and earthenware pots, and efficient utensils, were highly practical. In many areas all are in use today, even earthenware jars to store oil and wine. The older ways are more prevalent in rural and southern areas, while the cities of the North produce ultramodern appliances and kitchen designs that are not only used in wealthy Italian homes, but also exported worldwide.

REGIONAL SPECIALTIES

Discussion of Italy’s particularly important regional specialties are divided into the North, Central, and Southern regions. The provinces of Piedmont, Lombardy Veneto, and Emilio-Romagna will be considered as North; Tuscany, Umbria – The Marshes, and Rome-Lazio as Central; the Southern area will include the provinces and islands – Abruzzo-Molise, Naples-Campagna, Calabria-Lucania, Apulia, Sicily, Sardinia, and Corsica.

Perhaps nowhere else in the world are regional food specialties so passionately and proudly defended and enjoyed. And of all foods, none receives more passionate dedication in Italy than bread. Carol Field notes that “bread is so fundamental to everyday eating.’ that meals are described as what will accompany the bread. Breads for every occasion are found in plentiful supply in thousands of specialty bakeries throughout Italy, and many treasured family recipes begin by advising the cook to “take the baker’s bread dough and add …” What is deftly added creates the family’s snacks, meals, and holiday specialties. Varieties and uses include pizza, grissini, panini, crostini, bruschetta, foccace, bread salads, bread soups, and country cakes made from bread crumbs. Holiday breads include panettone, pandoro, bolzanese, veneziana, pizza de pasqua, and gubana – all sweet and light and many studded with raisins, nuts, and chopped fruits, and scented with spices, vanilla, and fresh lemon zest.

ITALIAN SPECIAL OCCASIONS

Almost all of the people of Italy profess the Roman Catholic faith, and according to many observers, the Church comes second only to the family in daily importance. From early infancy, through education and social services, festivities and special occasions, the Church plays a meaningful and important role. Yet, like Italian foods, personalities, and lifestyles, there is great variation throughout the country and generalities are difficult. Each village – indeed, each family – have special festive traditions. Together with the specialty foods, most festive occasions begin with devotional prayers and end with singing, dancing, wine-drinking, and feasting.

Natale – Christmas – is one of Italy’s most important holidays. In many regions the festivities begin with the setting up of miniature nativity scenes in the homes. Carolers visit from house to house, and the zampognari are the shepherds who descend into cities and villages playing ancient instruments such as flutes and ciarmeddi (bagpipes).

Traditionally a 24-hour fast precedes Christmas Day, which generally means that no meats or meat products are eaten. Eels for Christmas Eve are a great favorite, but in many areas tuna, clams, or squid with pasta form the main dish or may be served as an accompaniment to capitone (charcoal-grilled eels and bay leaves). Some may prefer frito misto di verdure, an array of precooked batter-fried vegetables. The pre-Christmas tradition of meatless meals is climaxed with a display of treasured regional desserts, cookies, and sweets, many made only at Christmastime, such as cullurelli, the sweet pastries from Calabria-Lucania made by deep-frying small balls of dough then serving hot with sugar: the traditional Neapolitan sweet called struffoli alla napolitana, made with tiny drops of fried dough bound in a rich honey syrup and garnished with tiny colored candies; the special Christmas treat prepared in Abruzzo-Molise called calciuni di molise, actually a type of sweet ravioli filled with a puree of chestnut and chocolate then fried and served with cinnamon sugar; and Bologna’s traditional Christmas cake, certosina, a rich dark honey cake with bitter chocolate, fruits and nuts and the aroma of anise seeds and cinnamon. The Ferrara region of Emilio-Romagna boasts a rich chocolaty yeast cake delicately scented with lemon and almonds. It is eaten from before Christmas to Twelfth Night and is called pampepato di cioccolato.

Christmas trees are not a usual part of Italian festivities, but the treasured displays of the nativity scene are. Also typical almost throughout Italy is the rich egg-yolk yeast bread dotted with chopped candied fruits and slivered nuts called panettone which everyone enjoys with cappuccino or espresso coffee throughout the holiday. Christmas is a time for family and friends and the day begins with coffee and panettone and often cups of zabaglione, the warm fluffy dessert made from whipped eggs and Marsala. Dinner on Christmas Day, is often a feast of the best the family can afford, sometimes following the traditional seven-course menu of homemade family specialties of antipastos, pastas, vegetable dishes, fish or seafood, with a traditional main course of stuffed roasted capons to he followed by brandied fruits, nuts, cookies, cakes, and fine liqueurs.

New Year’s follows many local and familial traditions too. For Sicilians, on Notte di Capo d’Anno, the doors are opened to sweep out the old year and the windows are opened to let in the new year. In Southern Italy, the new year is welcomed by the clatter of clay pots tossed from windows. Hopefully, there are no serious injuries, just good fun. Plates of cut-up herring are enjoyed as a symbol of luck, while lentils, a symbol of health and wealth and also the traditional staple of the poor, are consumed. Mistletoe is yet another symbol of luck. Money gifts (strenna) for the children and flowers sent for friends and relatives add excitement to the day The traditional dinner is stuffed pig’s legs and lentils, zampone di modena.

In some areas, children receive gifts at Christmas from the legendary kana, the witch who travels on her broom in search of the Holy Child after hearing about the birth of Christ from the zampognari (shepherds). In other homes, children and family exchange gifts, and still others give only money gifts at New Year’s.

There are many other special days on the calendar but these vary from region to region, as do the customs and foods. December 13 is traditionally the Feast of Santa Lucia when cuccia, a mixture of wheat and chickpeas (garbanzos), is eaten for each meal of the day. The Feast of St. Agatha is bright with parades and everyone enjoys nibbling on snacks of roasted seeds, nuts, beans, and cookies made with almonds and pistachios. February 15 is the special day for celebrating almond blossoms; sugar-coated almonds play an important role in many occasions such as weddings, anniversaries, graduations, and baptisms, while chopped or ground almonds and nougat and marzipan confections sweeten and flavor many festive dessert plates.

Throughout Italy, March 19 is celebrated as the Feast of St. Joseph (San Guiseppe), the patron saint of hearth and home. In consideration for the poor, meatless feast tables are set up with fish and seafood, vegetable and cheese dishes and breads and fresh fruits. Most homes share this meatless day by serving appetizers of fruits, vegetables, and olives; for example, orange slices, fennel, and black olives. The main meal of the day may follow the appetizer with a soup then fish and vegetable dishes. Again each area and family often prepares its own St. Joseph Day specialty dish. Bigne de San Giuseppe, deep-fried beignets dusted with sugar join the list of traditional sweets with fresh oranges and sweet yeast breads. Sicilians prepare sfinge, crisp crullers with cheese filling.

Pasqua (Easter) once again ushers in the familiar pattern of devotional prayers and gatherings of family and friends to feast together. Roasted whole suckling lambs, spring salads, eggs, roasted artichokes, and fugazza di pasqua, an egg-rich yeast bread lightly touched with orange, vanilla, almond, or lemon replace maritozzi quaresmali, the light fruity buns eaten throughout Lent.

Other festivals often retain more regional than national importance. For example, Rome celebrates Midsummer Night or St. John’s Eve with family gatherings where the traditional feast includes garlic-simmered snails garnished with fresh mint and tomato. May 9 and 10 are the special Sicilian dates for eating marzipan fruits (made from ground almond paste) and cuscusu, a dish patterned after the North African couscous but made with coarsely ground semolina and fish. Many areas of Italy celebrate July’s summer weather with day- or week-long festivities that include stewed snails and suckling roast pigs (porchetta). In Sicily the first two weeks of August are known as Ferragosto, the Feast of the Madonna; streets are brightened with religious floats and parades, and everywhere vendors sell grilled sausages and peppers, pizzas and polpi (octopus). And in case anyone still feels hungry, there are always seeds, candies, or nuts, or delicious ice cream for cooling refreshment.

On November 2, most Italians celebrate All Souls’ Day, a time of feasting and a warm remembrance of dead loved ones. No one seems to know why anymore, but beans have long been symbolic of death and the souls of the departed, so it is not surprising that fave dolci (sweet almond cookies shaped like fava beans) are eaten especially on All Souls’ Day.

ITALIAN MEALS AND CUSTOMS

The influence of Roman gastronomy on the foods and customs of countless peoples is unquestionable. It was a sophisticated influence that included meat inspectors, bakeries, private caterers, and even slave cooks. Early meal patterns comprised two or sometimes three meals a day. Jentaculum or ietaculum was a light breakfast of bread or a type of pancake with cheese or honey and sometimes olives or dates, with milk as a beverage. Prandium, a type of lunch, was served infrequently but included eggs, fish, or pork served with prepared vegetables or mushrooms and often fruit as dessert. Diluted wine was the meal’s beverage and mulsum (honey-sweetened wine) was possibly an appetizer.

The main and most important meal of the day was the evening meal, called cena. For many this meal was actually served in the late afternoon and for the average family it included a bowl of wheat porridge stirred with milk and served with honey. For the wealthier, it began with appetizers called gustato or promulsio (salads, fresh vegetable relishes, oysters, sardines, olives, etc.) and proceeded through six or seven main dishes prepared from fish or meats with vegetables and served with white bread and mulsum, and ending with sweets and fresh fruits in season. Occasionally the cena for the poor included vegetable soup and coarse bread.

By 200 B.C.E., the hour for the cena had gradually moved to the later part of the day, obviating the need for what had come to be known as the vesperna, a light snack before bedtime. The later cena became the practice as more and more people preferred to take a large meal after their daily public bath. Coinciding with the later cena, the prandium gained in importance. For many it was simply bread and cheese (similar to today’s sandwich), but occasionally it may have been a more formal miniature meal similar to the cena. As a rule, only slaves and young children did not recline while eating their meals.

Common practice in old Roman tradition was the silent offering of wheat, salt, and wine to household gods at the conclusion of the cena. Modern Italians in most urban areas have a wide choice of both location and menu for their meals. Cities boast simple or sophisticated ristorante, casual family-run trattoria featuring low-cost meals, or a choice of many rosticceria where a limited menu offers simple, inexpensive dishes and quick or stand-up service, and the osteria for quick light snacks. Innumerable street vendors, corner cappuccino and espresso cafes and pastry shops also eagerly offer sustenance to the passerby.

Throughout Italy, a hot morning drink of tea, coffee, or hot chocolate together with bread and jam or marmalade form the most typical breakfast. Lunch and dinner (the former usually about 1:00 p.m. and the latter usually about 7:30 p.m. and later in Rome) are similar meals but may vary in the number of courses depending on status and occasion, and perhaps appetite. Seven courses may be distinctly delineated in the most formal meal: antipasto, a variety of small servings of appetizers; minestra (soup) or asciutta, which may include either risotto or a pasta dish but in a small serving; pesce, one of a number of fish or seafood dishes; carne, meat dishes usually served with separately selected contorni or vegetables; fromaggio, some form of cheese so important in any Italian meal: frutta, selections from a platter of fresh fruits in season; and finally dolce, very sweet confections, pastries, and desserts.

Traditionally, the Italian stomach has required some small mid-morning and mid-afternoon sustenance called merende. This is usually a snack based on bread like crostini, bruschetta, focaccia, farinata (a bean pancake), fritelli (fritters), calzone, paniccia (fritters made from garbanzo dough) pizza, bite-size squares or cubes of polenta fried or grilled. Merende may also be a snack at home from leftovers like frittata, or a few fresh vegetables plucked from the garden and dipped in salt and olive oil. Or merende may be simply bread, cheese, and/or fruit nibbled out of hand and washed down with likely – wine.

Italians have some distinct preferences: they like their pasta al dente (chewy, not mushy), their rice tender and moistened with a sauce, and their tomatoes green unless specially ripened for sauces or specially requested as red. Italians also think it important to select carefully the piece of fresh fruit they would like to eat, so touching, pinching, and even sniffing for ripeness are all considered proper. Once Italians have finished eating, plates are immediately removed. It is almost a breach of etiquette both at home and in a restaurant to leave an obviously finished plate in front of the diner.