What is Italian American cuisine? How do we define traditional dishes transformed by Italian immigrants? Is the food we eat today the same as our mothers and grandmothers prepared? Italian American food traditions are often misunderstood and defined only in comparison to the “true” Italian canon.

In reality, Italian American food is its own unique cuisine, dishes, preparations, and ingredients that represent the immigrants’ experiences and settlement patterns. Rich in history and traditions, creative and comforting, Italian American dishes are packed with pride and originality. They often represent the newfound abbondanza — or the ability to feed family and friends on foods they couldn’t afford in their native land as a result of their greater purchasing power.