"Viva la Tavola di San Giuseppe!"- A St. Joseph's Foodie Friday

 The view from the terrace of Frances Mayes' Bramasole   

   When I was born, my parents named me Patrizia.  As you might imagine, the Rs and Zs don't roll as easily off the American tongue, and I almost immediately became "Pattie" much to my mother's chagrin. The decision to name me Patrizia actually caused a bit of a stir in the close-knit Italian circles tin which my family existed. Tradition- which is VERY important in a Sicilian family (my paternal side)- says that the first son is named after the paternal grandfather, the first daughter after the paternal grandmother, second son after the maternal grandfather, second daughter after the maternal grandmother, third son after the father, third daughter after the mother- and THEN, and only then, are the parents allowed to name their child some weird and wacky name. 

Like Patrizia

       My parents jumped the gun a bit. My mother was from Northern Italy, had no idea of these traditions and simply knew that all her life she had loved the name Patrizia. And she had no intention of having 6 children. 

She left that to me

       Now, Patrizia WASN'T my Grandma's name. Her name was Giuseppina (thanks Mom!). She was Peppina to her sisters and Josie to the rest of the world.
    
        There were actually people in the neighborhood who refused to call me by name, but insisted on referring to me as Peppina. They thought my mother had committed a grave offense and disrespected my grandmother in a blatant manner. Fortunately, my grandma Josie was a woman ahead of her time. She proclaimed it all ridiculous and said emphatically that Patrizia was the PERFECT name for her grand-daughter.

The end.

     

Isn't she adorable? Grandma Josie dancing with my Dad

However, this tradition explains why in any given Sicilian family, you tend to have 13 Franks, 11 Vinnies,  and 23 Joes. 


My father was the third son and consequently is named after my Grandpa Giuseppe, which means he's Joe Jr. 

My Grandpa Joe

              It also means that St. Joseph's Day is extra special in our house as we have many many Josephs in our family (see above).
  In Italy, March 19th is the day we celebrate the feast of Saint Joseph. There are many traditions associated with "La Festa di San Giuseppe" and, of course, many of them revolve around food. Here's a little history I found on the wonderful world wide web:

HISTORY
Many Italian St. Joseph's Day traditions stem from the middle ages. During a famine in Sicily, when food was scarce and many people were starving, the poor people had only their faith to rely on. St. Joseph was known as the protector of the Holy Family; thus, Italians with strong family relationships prayed for St. Joseph to intercede for them, in an effort to ensure successful crops. Their prayers were answered, and the famine came to an end. In gratitude, people promised to make annual offerings of their most precious possession – food – in St. Joseph's honor.

Those who visit a St. Joseph's table, often receive gifts of fava beans and breads. Fava beans play an integral part of the celebration because this was the food that saved the Sicilians from starvation. The bean is said to bring good luck, and it is believed that if the St. Joseph's bread is kept in the home, the family will never starve.

Today, after Mass  a big altar ("la tavola di San Giuseppe" or "St. Joseph's Table") is laden with food contributed by everyone in the village. Different Italian regions celebrate this day differently, but all involve special meatless foods: minestrone, pasta with breadcrumbs (the breadcrumbs symbolize the sawdust that would have covered St. Joseph's floor), seafood, Sfinge di San Giuseppe, and fava beans, which are considered "lucky" because during the drought, the fava thrived while other crops failed . 

The cry "Viva la tavola di San Giuseppe!" begins the feasting and is heard throughout the day. When the eating is done, the St. Joseph's altar is smashed, and then three children dressed as the Holy Family will knock on three doors, asking for shelter. They will be refused at the first two, and welcomed at the third, in memory of the Holy Family's seeking of hospitality just before Christ was born. This re-enactment is called "Tupa Tupa," meaning "Knock Knock."

            In our family, my Grandma Josie always made pasta with breadcrumbs and ground walnuts (to symbolize sawdust), she always made sure there were Sfinge di San Giuseppe (a pastry resembling cream puffs made of a choux paste and filled with a rich, thick crema), and of course, there was always bread, usually from my Uncle Mike's bakery. As I got older, it was my job to help grind the walnuts and fry the garlicky breadcrumbs. Tomorrow, I will be making this same meal for my father.

And we will be wearing red!

Another little tidbit about St. Joseph's:

     A most fascinating and beautiful thing that happens today is the return of the cliff swallows  to the Mission of San Juan Capistrano in San Juan Capistrano, California. The mission -- one of the oldest buildings in California, and a part of a string of 21 missions that line California's coast -- was founded on 1 November 1776, the Feast of All Saints, by the Franciscan priest, Junipero Serra, in honor of St. John Capistrano. It was begun the year before, with members of a friendly Indian tribe helping to build, but when word came that the Mission of San Diego was attacked by an unfriendly Indian tribe, the bells were buried and everyone took shelter until building could continue.   When the mission was finally completed, a small town grew up around it, and this is where the legend of the swallows -- "las golondrinas" -- begins. It is said that one of the priests noticed a storekeeper in town angrily sweeping down the swallows’ nests and chasing away the "dirty birds." The priest, being a Franciscan, of course invited the poor little birds to the Mission where there was "room for all." The birds, sensing the spirit of St. Francis around the place, followed and have remained loyal to the Mission ever since. No matter the origins of the story, the fact is that each year on 23 October, the swallows fly south for 7,500 miles to Goya, Argentina. There they winter until the end of February when they make their way home, arriving back at the Mission of Capistrano on St. Joseph's Day, where they are greeted with the ringing of church bells and great festivities.

Our St. Joseph's Bread

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Heads up here- I am not putting amounts on this recipe because, to be honest, it's never measured- it's all to taste

La Pasta di San Giuseppe

I pound spaghetti- boil water and be sure to use plenty of salt

fresh bread crumbs (I crumb some crusty Italian bread in a food processor)

a bag of walnut pieces, ground in my mini chopper

6-8 cloves of garlic, minced

olive oil

a handful of fresh Parsley, minced

2 flat anchovies, mashed in my mortar and pestle

While the pasta is cooking, toast the bread crumbs in some olive oil in a heavy skillet with the garlic. When they start to turn golden, stir in the mashed anchovies and incorporate. toast till deep gold, but do not burn. Remove to a bowl and toast the ground walnuts in the dry skillet. Warm some olive oil with a bit of kosher salt and fresh ground pepper. When pasta is cooked, drain and reserve a cup or so of the pasta water. Toss pasta with olive oil and pasta water. Toss in bread crumbs, ground walnuts, and parsley. Add more olive oil as needed and top with shredded Parmesan. May also be topped with finely grated lemon zest

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Sfinge di San Giuseppe (also known as St. Joseph's Zeppole)

Sfinge:

1 cup water 

1/3 cup unsalted butter 

1 TBSP sugar 

Grated rind of 1 lemon 

Pinch of salt 

1 cup sifted flour 

4 large eggs, at room temperature 

1 TBSP Cognac  

Put water, butter, granulated sugar, lemon rind, and salt in a large saucepan. Bring to a boil, and as soon as the butter has melted, remove from heat. Add the flour all at once, stirring constantly and with vigor. 

Return the pan to the heat, and stir constantly until the mixture forms a ball and comes away from the sides of the pan. Cook just a little longer, until you hear a slight crackling, frying sound. Remove the pan from the heat, and cool slightly. 

Add the eggs, one at a time. Be sure that each egg is thoroughly blended into the mixture before you add the next. Stir until smooth and thoroughly blended . Add the Cognac or vanilla. Cover the dough and let it stand for 15 to 20 minutes. 

Preheat the oven to 400º F. 

Pipe the dough in concentric circles with a large star tip,  leaving 2 inches between the sfinge. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until golden brown. Remove from oven, make a small slit in the top with the point of a sharp knife and cool. Cut off the top and pipe in filling with a large palin tip. Top with a maraschino or glazed cherry

Crema di Pasticceria

(pastry cream)

1/4 cup all-purpose flour

6 tablespoons cornstarch 

2 1/2 cups milk

1 vanilla bean split lengthwise

6 large egg yolks

1/2 cup granulated white sugar

4 Tablespoons butter

Directions

In a small bowl sift together flour and cornstarch, set aside.

In a saucepan on medium heat, combine the milk and the split vanilla bean- scrape the seeds from the bean into the milk; cook till it begins to simmer. Watch carefully so your milk doesn’t scald or you will have a skin on top. If you do notice a skin forming, remove it before you are ready to add it to your egg mixture. Turn heat off. 

Meanwhile, in a stand mixer or with a handheld mixer, beat eggs and sugar together until creamy pale yellow.Add the flour/cornstarch mix and beat till well incorporated and it  is quite thick

Slowly pour hot milk into egg mixture in a very thin stream beating constantly (don't use high speed or it will foam up) to prevent curdling. When incorporated, remove vanilla bean. Return custard to pan you heated the milk in and place on medium heat till mixture begins to thicken and come to a soft boil. Stir constantly and mix from bottom of pan to prevent custard from scalding. When it begins to come to a slow boil time it for another minute or so.. custard will be very thick. Turn off heat. 

Add the 4 tablespoons of butter and mix well. Transfer to a bowl and press plastic wrap onto surface. Cool and refrigerate till cold

Today we are linking to our favorite weekly blog event- Foodie Friday at Designs by Gollum. Come join us, won't you?


We're also linking to Family Friday at Terra Del Sole Come and read some fascinating stories!

As Always,

Buon Alimenti, Buon Amici,

Pattie and Allie