“On Christmas Day, the food that makes up the Cenone (literally meaning ‘big dinner’) varies from region to region, but meat is normally back on the menu, often accompanied by pasta. The meal is followed by panettone, a sweet bread loaf originating from Milan, and other desserts filled with nuts, which were historically a symbol of fertility for the coming year.”
****
Half right. Our Sicilian family sticks to timpano’ which is hard to make. Yeah, the same timpano’ in the Big Night’. Then we watch DIE HARD. best Christmas movie ever after Wonderful Life.
Nuts are a symbol of fertility? I don’t get it.
I thought for sure someone would have posted a link to “Dominick the Italian Christmas Donkey” from youtube.
Christmas Eve in Grandma’s basement in Brooklyn, as I remember it:
I was given a shot of blackberry brandy to warm up when I got inside, and then some roasted chestnuts (which were disgusting.) And there were cheese balls from the blue Planters container. There were always cheese balls at her house.
Dinner was a fish fiesta. Scungilli/calamari/other yucky fish. At the kid’s table we waited for Aunt Marie to bring us the big raviolis (Silver Star brand, best brand. I can picture the box with the wax paper inside.)
When dinner was over, the women cleaned the table. Grandma was in charge of washing, and me, my mom, my aunts and cousins dried.
After that the adults played cards. They all smoked but I forget which brand.
We fell asleep in the car on the way home.
Grandma will be 99 at the end of December:)
My wife is pureblooded Italian, her mother being an immigrant. Her father was the son of immigrants.
For the 50 years I have known her, they have fish on Christmas eve. In the old days with more people, they probably had all seven types of fish.
I spent 2 Christmases in Southern Italy and still remember the special pastries and cakes that were only sold for the holiday.....regular dining in “hole-in-the-wall” Mom and Pop ristorantes was always a special treat - they know how to take their time over the evening meal.
