Sicilian Girl

Tweet “Natale con i tuoi, Pasqua con chi voui” Christmas with your family, Easter with whomever you please. This old Italian saying sings the truth. Colorful, flavorful and full of fun, Easter is my favorite holiday. Unlike Christmas, where there can be an overwhelming list of things to do (shopping, cooking, entertaining, overnight guests, etc.) [...]

Tweet   Saint Joseph, (San Giuseppe) was chosen by the eternal Father as the trustworthy guardian and protector of his greatest treasures, namely his divine Son and Mary, Joseph’s wife. The beloved saint looks after children, unwed mothers, the needy and  is the patron saint of Sicily. To celebrate his feast day on March 19, [...]

Tweet San Giuseppe, (Saint Joseph) was the husband of Mary, the Mother of God and is the patron saint of the family. On March 19, in celebration of the Feast of San Giuseppe, elaborate altars will be filled with food all over Sicily and New Orleans. This tradition commemorates the relief Saint Joseph provided during [...]

Tweet This pasta dish is a classic for New Orleanians of Sicilian descent. It is the ritual meal (a cena di San Giuseppe) that is traditionally served on March 19th for Saint Joseph’s Day (San Giuseppe). This version is adapted slightly from John Besh’s recipe in his cookbook, My New Orleans.     Ingredients: 1/4 [...]

Tweet The quintessential New Orleans sandwich, the muffuletta, is rarely found anywhere outside of the Crescent City. Pronounced “moo-foo-LET-ta,” this deli meat and cheese hero piled with a tangy olive salad is a New Orleans specialty but is pure Sicilian. Since the Super Bowl is being played in New Orleans this Sunday and I need [...]

Tweet In Italy, merenda is a nourishing “Small Bite” in it’s simplest form defined by the season, varies from region to region and is based on a respect for natural ingredients. Merenda (like so many things) was born out of necessity. The men who worked the fields and pastures spent long and tiring hours away [...]

Tweet   Many years ago when my son Joe was just a little boy, we spent Easter in the California Sierra’s. We have a cabin surrounded by sugar and ponderosa pine trees, white firs, cypress and a couple of magnificent oaks with a redwood forest down the road. It’s our own little piece of heaven [...]

Tweet Ash Wednesday, the day after Mardi Gras,  marks the first day of Lent. For Christians around the world, it is a time of prayer and penance, fasting and abstinence, reflection and renewal. It is a time when many of us take stock of our spiritual lives. A spiritual fast involves abstaining from food while focusing [...]

Tweet Grits are made from corn grown across the south and for hundred’s of years have been the center of the Southern diet and culture. Historically,  the port cities that were settled by Europeans (Charleston, Wilmington, Savannah and New Orleans) preferred white corn. Moving inland, yellow corn was the choice. Grits for breakfast, grits for [...]

Tweet King Cakes are a huge part of Mardi-Gras traditions throughout the south. Also known as Twelfth Night Cake, you will find this brioche-type pastry in bakeries from January 6th (Twelfth Night) to Ash Wednesday. This cake was used to celebrate the coming of the three wise men bearing gifts twelve days after Christmas. In [...]