Celebrating cuccidati, the Sicilian Christmas cookie that merits its own festival
On a recent cold and gray December Sunday, dozens of Italian families gathered to celebrate a Sicilian Christmas cookie at Casa Italia, the Italian cultural center in west suburban Stone Park. Little known outside Italian-American communities, the fig-stuffed treats, called cuccidati, are loved enough to warrant their own festival, now in its secon...
Giovanni Savarese announced as new Portland Timbers head coach
The Portland Timbers have named Giovanni Savarese as the club’s head coach entering the 2018 MLS season. Savarese, the third head coach in the club’s MLS history, brings over 25 years of professional experience as a player and coach to the Timbers organization, most recently serving as the head coach and sporting director of the New York Cosmos whe...
Buon Natale! 5 Italian Christmas Movies to Light Up Your Language skills
“Natale a New York” (“Christmas in New York”): Maybe it’s best to start somewhere familiar.There are loads of movies about Christmas in New York, and Italy’s lineup is no exception. “Natale a New York” (literally, “Christmas in New York”) is a pretty straightforward wacky comedy about just that. The film revolves around a wide cast of characters an...
Squisito Franchise Enterprises, Inc. is Coming To Oakton, VA with New Franchisee
Squisito Franchise Enterprises, Inc. has signed on a new franchisee in the Fairfax County, VA area, Kevin Trump. Squisito Pizza & Pasta is a fast casual, authentic Italian restaurant originating in Anne Arundel County, Maryland and expanding across the Eastern Seaboard. Mr. Trump marks the 4th franchisee for the brand and his first location will be...
Iconic Bank of Italy building is bought, signaling rising downtown San Jose interest
The Bank of Italy office building, deemed by experts to be downtown San Jose’s most iconic tower, has been bought by investors based in Menlo Park and Manhattan, according to public records that indicate WeWork has taken an ownership interest in the high rise. Through several transactions in December and October, two investment groups that are work...
In the Day: Italian jack-of-all-trades creates rich foundation for Frisk family in Ellwood City
A hefty bank account doesn’t always indicate a man’s wealth. Sometimes it’s the rich legacy he leaves behind. For Frank Frisk, an Italian immigrant from Salerno, the prospects of a new life — and work — in America was beckoning. Born Jan. 6, 1864, as Pasquale Fresca, he arrived about 1886 in the United States, where his name was Americanized to Fra...
Enrico Castellani obituary
Enrico Castellani, who has died aged 87, was a quiet man who made quiet art. Yet he was regarded not only as one of the great Italian artists of the 20th century, but the “father of minimalism”. It was the American artist Donald Judd who dubbed him thus, but Castellani’s art was rooted in the avant-garde milieu of mid-20th century Europe. At first...
There's more than one leaning tower in Italy
Italy’s towers are an integral part of her appeal, yet comparatively few remain. At the height of its development, Lucca boasted 250 towers; today has only 3. The hilltop town of San Gimignano holds the honor of best representing what a hilltop town looked like in days of old. Her 17 towers proudly nudge the Tuscan sky, asking if it remembers the d...
Roman Trattoria Rises in Bankers Hill
Replacing the Royal Stone Restaurant & Wine Bar, the Bankers Hill bistro that shuttered in September, is a new Italian restaurant called Mia Trattoria. Named after owner Sergio Torrisi’sone-year-old daughter, the eatery is his first stateside restaurant. Torrisi and his father Ivan each have over two decades of industry experience in Rome, Italy, w...
Italy's 2017 Nativity scenes feature Trump, Kim _ and Jedis
Naples' Christmas artisans are at it again, turning figures from current events into ceramic characters to decorate miniature Nativity scenes that take over Italian living rooms this time of year. Hot sellers this year include Jedi warriors from the new Star Wars movie and statuettes of U.S. President Donald Trump, Russian leader Vladimir Putin and...
Postdoc Brings Fresh Perspective and New Model Organism to the Institute
When Alice Accorsi, PhD, first encountered the freshwater snail Pomacea canaliculata, it was as an invasive pest of crops and the intermediate host of a parasitic roundworm that can cause human encephalitis. Accorsi, then a graduate student at the University of Modena and Reggio Emilia in Modena, Italy, was searching for vulnerabilities in the snai...
Comella’s opens in downtown Winchester
Winchester’s newest eatery, Comella’s, opened on Dec. 6 in Winchester Center. The Comella brothers have been eyeing the Winchester location on 529 Main St. for their pizza shop for a few years now. With the spot to the middle school and high school, the town had two key elements Comella’s look for while expanding -- family demographics and a busy c...