RECIPE

The Feast of The Seven Fish Italian Christmas Cookbook Recipes – Daniel Bellino

The FEAST of The 7 FISH

“ITALIAN CHRISTMAS”

AMAZON.com

La FAMIGLIA

“La VIGILIA”

The FEAST of The 7 FISH. “ITALIAN CHRISTMAS”

Daniel Bellino-Zwicke is the author of

The Feast of The 7 Fish, a popular cookbook celebrating the Italian-American Christmas Eve tradition. The book features recipes, stories, and instructions for preparing the multi-course seafood meal, often called La Vigilia.

About Daniel Bellino-Zwicke:

He is a long-time Italian food and wine professional from New York.

He has worked as a chef, wine director, and managing partner at various restaurants, including
Bar Cichetti

, which he founded.
Bellino-Zwicke has authored several best-selling Italian cookbooks, including Sunday Sauce, Ragu Bolognese Cookbook, and Positano The Amalfi Coast Cookbook.
He often writes about Italian-American cuisine and culture, incorporating personal stories and travel experiences.
About the book, The Feast of The 7 Fish:

The book serves as both a cookbook and a cultural guide to the traditional meal.

It provides historical context for the Southern Italian and Italian-American Christmas Eve feast.
The recipes include traditional dishes such as Baked Clams Oreganta, Seafood Salad, Linguine with Clam Sauce, and Mussels Marinara.
The book aims to preserve and share the family tradition, which has often been passed down orally through generations.
The tradition of the Feast of the Seven Fishes:
Origin: It is an Italian-American tradition that evolved from the Catholic practice of abstaining from meat on the eve of holy days. While fish-centric meals are common in Southern Italy, the specific “seven fishes” tradition is largely an American development.

Symbolism: The number seven can symbolize various things, including the seven sacraments of the Catholic Church, the seven hills of Rome, or the seven days of creation.
The meal: It is a multi-course dinner featuring a variety of seafood, which can include baccalà (salt cod), calamari, clams, mussels, and eel. The specific dishes often vary by region and family tradition.

SETTE PESCI

Pavarotti Cooks Spaghetti – Pasta alla Pavarotti recipe by Bellino

LUCIANO Cooks PASTA

“BRAVO LUCIANO” !!!

PAVAROTTI PASTA

Recipe :

1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 medium Onion, peeled and sliced
2 j- 32 oz. jars of Italian Tomato Passata (we like Mutti)
3 cloves Garlic, peeled and chopped
2 tbsp. Tomato Paste
1/4 cup red wine
1/4 cup chopped Italian Parsley

12 fresh Basil Leaves, washed and torn with your hands
1/2 cup grated Parmesan or Romano cheese
1/2 teaspoon Red Pepper Flakes
1 pound of imported Italian Spaghetti (best quality)

In a large skillet, add the Olive Oil and onion. Cook the onion on low heat for 4 minutes. Add the garlic and cook on low heat for 2 minutes.

Add the wine, turn heat to high, and cook for 5 minutes.

Add the Tomatoes, Tomato Paste. Add 1 1/2 teaspoon each of Salt & ground Black Pepper, and half of the Pecorino Cheese.

Bring to the boil. Once the tomatoes start to bubble, low heat to low, and cook on low heat for 20 minutes, being sure to stir with a wooden spoon, scraping the bottom of the pot with the wooden spoon to keep the tomatoes from sticking or burning.

After 20 minutes, add the Basil & Parsley, and cook 5 minutes more. The Tomato Sauce is done. Turn the heat off and let it rest in the pot.

Fill a large pot, 3/4 full with water. Add 2 tablespoons salt. Bring the water to a rapid boil. Add the Spaghetti.

Cook the spaghetti according to the directions on the package. Two minutes before the the pasta cooking time on package, remove one cup of water from the pot and reserve. When the spaghetti is 1 minute away from the cooking time on package, turn the heat off and drain the pasta in a colander.

Add the Spaghetti back to the pot it cooked in and add half of the cooking water. Add 2 cups of the tomato sauce. to the pot, and turn the heat on to a low flame. Cook for 2 minutes on a low flame. Add more of the pasta cooking water if it gets too dry.

Turn the heat off, and drizzle some olive oil over the spaghetti and mix.

Plate a portion of Spaghetti onto each persons plate. Add about half a cup of Tomato Sauce on top of each portion of Spaghetti, and serve.

Serve with grated Pecorino or Parmigiana Cheese on the side.

Enjoy !

Recipe by Daniel Bellino Zwicke

SPAGHETTI alla PAVAROTTI

A DINNER PARTY at LUCIANO’S

NEW YORK

SINATRA & PAVAROTTI

And PASTA SINATRA !!!

SINATRA SAUCE

The COOKBOOK

COOK & EAT LIKE FRANK

His FAVORITE ITALIAN RECIPES

Daniel Bellino Zwicke

AMAZON.com

Renaissance Recipe Pasticcio alla Contessa ARCELLI FONTANA – Piacenza Italy

PASTICCIO alla PIACENTINA

RENAISSANCE Recipe from COUNTESS ARCELLI FONTANA

ANOTHER TIMBALLO

PASTICCIO alla PIACENTINA

RENAISSANCE Recipe from COUNTESS ARCELLI FONTANA

“La PALTA RISTORANTE”

PASTICCIO alla CONTESSA FONTANA

PIACENZA, ITALY

RECIPE :

For the shortcrust pastry

Flour 250 g
Butter 80 g
Egg 1
Egg yolks 2
Sunflower seed oil 30 g
Sugar 25 g
Powdered sugar 25 g
Baking powder 4 g
Black pepper to taste
Fleur de sel to taste

For the filling

Pasta 300 g
Roe deer 500 g
Onion 1
Butter 100 g
Amaretti biscuits 30 g
Grana Padano 50 g
Egg 1
Juniper berries 2
Cypress pine cone 1
Black pepper to taste
Nutmeg to taste
Bay leaves 2
Salt to taste

MORE GREAT ITALIAN FOOD

MANGIA ITALIANO

“MEMORIES of ITALIAN FOOD”

In STORIES & RECIPES

by Daniel Bellino Z

AMAZON.com

MANGIA ITALIANO

MANGIA ITALIANO ! You Know What It Means?Yes! “EAT ITALIAN” !!!

Everyone LOVES ITALIAN FOOD ! Right? We’ll Take This “MAGICAL JOURNEY” A Journey To The World of ITALIAN FOOD of “Mother Italy” and The ITALIAN-AMERICAN COMMUNITY. Take it with BEST SELLING Author Daniel Bellino Zwicke and his DELIGHTFUL STORIES of ITALIAN FOOD, of ITALY, and the Italian-American Culture in all its most Wonderful Glory, “THAT’S ITALIAN” MEMORIES in ITALIAN FOOD, RECIPES and more … “COME TAKE THIS WONDERFUL JOURNEY With US”Mangia Italiano, Memories of Italian Food is a decades long journey of Best Selling Italian Cookbook Author Daniel Bellino “Z” and his lifelong experiences and love of Italian Food from the beginning of being weaned on Pastina, the first Pasta in a long life of eating Maccheroni (Pasta) as the staple food of his Italian-American family’s diet. Moving on to Spaghetti & Meatballs, Daniel’s First Experience in eating White Truffles with Pasta, to dining out in local Italian Restaurants over the years, along with taking numerous cultural and culinary journeys to the Mother Country, Italy. The author traveled to: Rome, Venice, Tuscany, Napoli, The Amalfi Coast, Verona, Sicily, and the whole of the Italian peninsula and its many lovely islands. He ate, he learned, he lived the Italian Life in all its many splendors. In Mangia Italiano the author recalls all his many experiences with Italian Food over the yeas, both in New York and Italy. Mangia Italiano is filled with Daniel’s delightful stories of a his remarkable journey into all of Italy’s cherished Regional Cuisines, counting a multitude of ingredients turned into a variety of savory recipes. Among the mouthwatering dishes, are recipes for such items as: Sicilian Stuffed Artichokes, Mudica Steaks, Venetian Braised Duck, Italian Wedding Soup, Ragu Napoletana (Gravy), Umberto’s Shrimp Sauce for Pasta, Nonna Bellino’s Tomato Sauce, Pasta Rotta, Spaghetti Carbonara, Porchetta, Frank Sinatra’s Egg Sandwich, Amalfitana Lemon Cake, and more. Mangia Italiano will “Inspire” you to your similar Italian Experiences as well and is a book that’s sure to bring you much JOY all through the years. Read the stories, cook these fine dishes and enjoy a splendid life, Italian Style!Author’s

Bio: DANIEL BELLINO ZWICKE is the Best Selling Author of: La Tavola, The Ragu Bolognese Cookbook, Grandma Bellino’s Cookbook, The Feast of The Seven Fish / ITALIAN CHRISTMAS, and SUNDAY SAUCE

Daniel created BAR CICHETTI, America’s First Ever Venetian Wine Bar (Bacaro), he lives and writes in New York’s Greenwich Village, New York City

BOOKS : SUNDAY SAUCE, THE RAGU BOLOGNESE COOKBOOK,

“SINATRA SAUCE, GRANDMA BELLINO’S ITALIAN COOKBOOK

The FEAST of The 7 FISH “ITALIAN CHRISTMAS”

MANGIA BENE TUTTI !!!

BEST SELLING ITALIAN COOKBOOKS on AMAZON.com

What is Red Sauce – author Daniel Bellino Explains

“RED SAUCE”

What is Red Sauce? A question often asked. Well, there is no one sauce that is Red Sauce. When using the term “Red Sauce,” you are talking about any one of several different Italian Sauce (Italian-American), made with Tomatoes, and mostly served on and of 100 types of different pastas (Maccheroni), but not only on Maccheroni.

Red Sauce can be a Tomato Sauce, without any meat in it, just tomatoes, olive oil, garlic, and fresh basil, and maybe oregano, or not. Then the other Sauce that falls into the category known as “Red Sauce,” is what is known as Sunday Sauce, Gravy, “Gravy,” or simply SAUCE. These are all Red Sauce’s. These Red Sauce’s that have meat in them might be made with tomatoes of course that have Sausages, Meatballs, and Braciole, and other meats according to what the person cooking it likes in his Sunday Sauce (Sunday Gravy, Gravy). For instance, my favorite way of making Sunday Sauce, is with Sausages, Meatballs, and Pork Spare Ribs slowly cooked in the sauce. But I don’t always make it this way, I with it up according to my mood. Sometimes I make it with Sausages, Meatballs, & Pork Ribs, while other times I might replace the Meatballs with Chicken Thighs and make my “Sauce” with Sausages, Ribs, & Chicken Thighs. Yes, I said “Chicken thighs which taste great, slowly cooked in the Sauce. All of these sauces mention, are Red Sauces.

When making the a Sunday Sauce, I make enough to last at least 3 days, and we get a number of meals out of the one sauce. You put the time in to make the sauce, you should make it last. It take about the same time to make a small pot of sauce as it does to make one two or three times larger. It doesn’t make sense to me to make a small pot of sauce, that I will only get 1 or two meals from. I want to get a minimum of 4 meals or more out of the one pot of sauce. For example, when I make a sauce that has meatballs in it, I always want a good amount of meatballs in the sauce. We eat the Maccheroni with all the meats, the Sausages, Ribs, & Meatballs on Sunday. Monday rolls around, which is what I (Daniel Bellino Zwicke) have coined years ago, “Meatball Parm Mondays” which I wrote about in my book Sunday Sauce, way back in 2013. So, “Meatball Parm Mondays?” We Italian (Italian-American) men love our Meatball Parm Sandwiches. We make the Sunday Sauce on Sunday (sometimes Saturday), and we eat it with Maccheroni (short pasta) on Sunday. When Monday rolls around, we take the leftover Meatballs from the previous days Sunday Sauce, and we make Meatball Sandwiches for Monday’s lunch or dinner, and we are happy campers. On Tuesday, whatever is left of the Sunday Sauce, we’ll cook up some Maccheroni, and eat it with whatever is leftover from the sauce made on Sunday. Maybe it’s just tomato sauce which is left, which we dress the Maccheroni with. Maybe there’s a little meat left which is thrown on as well. Sometimes I’ll put quite a good amount of Sausages in the Sauce when I make it on Sunday, and if any sausages are left in the sauce come Tuesday, I might make a Sausage Sandwich. You see, you want to get a lot out of that one Sauce that you make on Sunday. Take my advice, and do it.

Red Sauce (Tomato Sauce) is the backbone of Italian-American cooking, which many dishes are made with tomato sauce. You use Red Sauce to make dishes like: Eggplant Parmigiana, Chicken Parm, Lasagna, Baked Maccheroni, Eggplant Rolatini, baked Ziti, and more.

Oh, by the way. Some Italians use the term Red Sauce, but it is more of a non Italian-American thing than an Italian-American thing. Americans who are not of Italian heritage, are the people who use this term (Red Sauce) most. Some Italian-Americans use the term, but when talking about a sauce, Italian-Americans are more prone to using the actual name of the sauce, saying, Marinara or Marinara Sauce, Tomato Sauce, Sunday Sauce, “Gravy,” or Sunday Sauce, than using the term “Red Sauce,” which is used more by non-Italian.

The there is the great debate, on Sunday Sauce, Sauce, Gravy, and Sunday Sauce, which are all sauces made with various meats that are slowly cooked with tomatoes. Many call it Sunday Sauce, and some call it Gravy. It all depends on what your family comes from where your origins are in Italy, and what Italian Enclave you live in in America, whether in Brooklyn, Jersey, Boston, Baltimore, or New York. What do you call it? Don’t get in a tiff over it. The most important thing to remember, is the taste of your Sunday Sauce, and the people you share it with. The Sauce must be tasty. That goes without saying. Enjoy!

Daniel Bellino Zwicke