Christmas Eve - Feast of the Seven Fishes

In the traditional Italian household, Christmas Eve is the night of the seven fishes or in our house the night we place thirteen different foods on the table.  None of the foods can be meat.

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The table may be set up for a sit down dinner such as the one above

Or set out as a buffet.  The above buffet boasts mostly fancy dishes but in our house the buffet was made up of Anchovy Pasta, Breaded Fried Smelts, Bacala Stew, Tuna Fish Casserole, Shrimp Cocktail, and Crab Cakes.  Much plainer dishes but always enough to serve both family and any guests who might come to the door.  It is a night to feast and rekindle family ties and friendships.

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It was always a challenge to bread the smelts and fry them.  More recently, I found the smelts already breaded in the frozen section of Labriola's Italian Store.  Even if you don't live in Pittsburgh, you can find this store online for easy purchasing.

Anchovy Pasta

The Anchovy Pasta, was never a favorite of my children but my father-in-law loved it and until he moved to North Carolina, I continued to make it just the way Nunny showed me the first Christmas that it was my turn to host Christmas Eve.  I later replaced the Anchovy Pasta with pieces of fried fish.

Speaking of Nunny she told many tales of making eel for the feast as well as other delicacies from the sea.

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Bacala Stew startd with a piece of cod that has to be soaked in water to get the salt removed and tenderize the fish. We first tasted this dish when it was brought to the house by my son's grandmother-in-law as a donation for the Christmas Eve Feast.

My husband's family set out thirteen dishes on the table, seven of which were fish, to signify the Lord and Disciples at the Last Supper.  We have changed what we serve over the years since my husband passed but we still celebrate Christmas on Christmas Eve and don't eat meat.

Christmas Cookies - Ricotta Cheese Cookies

Even though these are first on my love of cookies for Christmas, they make a wonderful Wedding Cookie as well.  The consistency is great and they can be dressed up with almonds, nuts, sprinkles or candied sugar in the colors of the wedding party dresses on the icing.

I first tasted these Ricotta Cookies when I was visiting my oldest stepdaughter, Lisa, a few years ago for Christmas.  Today's blog is a tribute to Lisa.   Lisa was another Nunny in the making because she loved to cook and bake.  She got her love of baking from her grandmother and was forever trying new recipes such as this one.  Her mother was also a very good baker and cook so Lisa was double blessed in the kitchen area.

Ricotta Cookies with colored sugar for Christmas

Of course, I had to have the recipe and I've made them ever since.  They have a softer consistency than the Knot Cookies.  They tend to melt in your mouth with that ever so popular cheese flavoring.

Cookies fresh from oven cooling on wire rack

I've been making these cookies now for about five years and they get better with every attempt.  It is important to let the cookies set and cool completely because they are very soft and my recipe calls for dipping the cookie in the thin icing.

Mixing the Thin icing.

Once they are dipped in the icing let the excess drip off.

Ricotta Cookie with Chocolate Icing

Then you can either dip them into a a bowl of colored sugar, sprinkle the sugar or

iced with sliced almonds

decorate with sliced almonds or

iced with candied cherries

cut pieces of candied cherries on them.

Ricotta Cookie garnished with Strawberry Slices

These cookies can be used as a dessert by adding cut strawberries onto the icing.

Lisa has joined Nunny and her Dad.  All three loved to bake but these cookies have joined the list of my favorites for Christmas.  They are a Wedding Cookie favorite as well.  As Nunny used to say, "Try them -- you'll like them."

Christmas Cookies: Pizzelles

Pizzelles are not just a Christmas Cookie.  They can be made all year round but are very popular on the wedding cookie table.  They can be made in bulk and can be colored to match the wedding colors.  I prefer the smaller pizzelle iron to make the cookies consistent in size with the other wedding cookies.

The very first cookie that I usually make for Christmas is Pizzelles to start my assortment of cookies.  I make these first because they stay fresh and crispy the longest.  It's not too soon to start those holiday cookies if you start by making several batches of pizzelles and making them in different flavors.

Once I misplaced my container of Pizzelles I made for Christmas and couldn't find it on Christmas Eve for our Feast of the Seven Fishes.  When I found the container seven months later the cookies were just as good as the day I packed them into the large Tupperware Container. which is airtight.  I always wrap a dozen pizzelles in aluminum foil before placing them in the container.

Anise Pizzelles

My daughter-in-law likes the traditional anise pizzelles

Chocolate Pizzelles

and my daughter prefers chocolate pizzelles.

I usually make both kinds the very first week that I start making cookies for Christmas or any occasion.  Of course, the first question I would get is, "Where's mine?"  So I make a sampling, just four of each for my two pizzelle lovers.

four cookie pizzelle iron

Before my husband passed on, he bought me a new pizzelle iron which makes four pizzelles at a time and the size of the cookie is smaller than regular pizzelles.  The size of the cookies is actually perfect to fit on a cookie tray with other cookies.  This iron is Teflon coated and doesn't need to be basted before using it.  There is enough oil in the cookie dough to prevent sticking.

A year ago, I taught my granddaughter how to make pizzelles and gave her my 4 pizzelle iron.  she made them for her brother's wedding that year.  When I gave her the iron, I told her it was now her job to make the pizzelles for family affairs.

two cookie pizzelle iron

I gave Nunny's original pizzelle iron to my son-in-law who makes pizzelles and sends me a dozen cookies every Christmas.  This one needed to be preheated with cooking oil so that the cookies didn't stick to the pan.  I normally used Pam and only needed to spray it once when it was warming up.

single cookie pizzelle iron for open flames

Over the years these cookies has taken on a whole new way of making them.  When I was younger, I remember my neighbor making them every Christmas with a single cookie iron over the fire on the stove.  This took time and patience.  You can still buy those but being a person who enjoys convenience, I prefer my four cookie iron.

Pizzelles made into bowls and canoli tubes

Another fun way to use pizzelles is to roll them into canoli tubes or use them for miniature ice cream sandwiches.  Some make little bowls out of them that can be filled with seasonal desserts.  In order to accomplish this you need to form them as soon as they come off the iron so that they maintain the shape you desire.

So whatever your pleasure, give this cookie a try.  If you like making your own waffles you will enjoy having these come out perfect for you.  As Nunny used to say, "Try it -- You'll like it."

Christmas Cookies - Oatmeal Date or Fig Bars

This little bit of taste treat is another wonderful addition to the wedding cookie table even though I normally only make it for Christmas.

Christmas wouldn't be complete without a batch of my Mom's Oatmeal Date Bars.  These cookies are so easy to make but they don't make a lot of cookies.  The recipe I have makes a 9" square pan of cookies.

There is no reason you can't substitute figs for the dates.  Imagine that!  A substitute for Fig Newtons.  This has always been one of my favorite store-bought cookies.  I could eat a whole tin of Fig Newtons in a sitting.

My love of dates has long been my downfall when it comes to baking cookies.  When I was a child, I raided the dates from the pantry shelf every year.  It's interesting that I tried to get dates earlier in the year but they didn't have them on the shelf at the supermarket.  They had prunes and cranberries but not dates.  This is interesting because I love dates so much. 

If you need a larger amount of cookies for your wedding needs, my suggestion would be to double the recipe if you need a larger amount of cookies.  This would easily make a 13" x 9" pan and give you enough cookies to add to your holiday trays.