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Christmas Eve has always been my favorite day of the year. Growing up, while most people I knew had their big holiday celebrations on Christmas Day, my family always pulled out the stops the night before. And like any good Italian American family, we didn’t dine on turkey or ham or casseroles of any kind — rather, we celebrated Feast of the Seven F...

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’Tis the season for the Christmas crèche, a depiction of the birth of Jesus displayed in churches, in homes and—sometimes controversially—on public property. In most of these scenes, the divine child lies on a bed of straw, watched over by Mary, Joseph and a few reclining animals. Shepherds arrive, and three Magi, or wise men, approach. A tableau o...

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Panforte is a typical Christmas cake from Siena, whose origins go back in time. A parchment attests to the existence of Panforte since at least 1205, but, in a simpler version, it originated even earlier, around the year 1000. Originally, it was a honey-based focaccia and was called pan mielato (honey bread). Fruit was added later, but, during the...

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This thing about The Feast of Seven Fishes that Italians do on Christmas Eve was something I learned, I dunno, maybe when I was 40 years old. I mean, we all have traditions, right? And our own family tradition on Christmas Eve was extra special because it was also my Grandma Ida’s birthday. My Auntie Sis has hosted our family’s Christmas Eve dinner...

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When thinking of Sicily, it's easy to imagine white sandy beaches, timeless architecture and a host of delicacies like arancini, caponata and cannoli. But panettone would not be among the first things to come to mind. The popular Christmas cake is traditionally baked in the north of Italy, particularly in the city of Milan, where it was invented. T...

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The chef who bought a well-known restaurant in Collingswood is preparing a feast for an Italian-American Christmas tradition. Chef Michael DeLone bought Nunzio Ristorante Rustico last year from his mentor, and is bringing the tradition of "The Feast of Seven Fishes" to the Italian BYOB eatery on Restaurant Row. Its namesake, Nunzio Patruno, was...

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The typical spiced pastries of the Christmas markets, in various shapes (stars, hearts, crescents) often decorated with greeting phrases, have a very ancient origin: it was in 1409, as a matter of fact, that the word "lebkuchen" appeared for the first time in documents of the pastry chef guild of Nuremberg, the city from which these eventually spre...

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In Naples there is already a crib figurine of world champion Leo Messi with Argentina, signed by master Genny Di Virgilio. It took just two hours after the Albicelestre won the World Cup in Qatar against France (4-2 on penalties, after 2-2 in regulation time and 3-3 after extra time, in an endless battle between the two teams) to see Leo Messi rais...

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A representation of students from La Scuola d'Italia and other schools returned to cheer up the reception hall of the Italian Consulate in New York with the Christmas Action Party 2022, which resumes the tradition of pre-Christmas playful-sports games set to healthy nutrition and motor activity for children from the Italian, Italian American and It...

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For Donato Chiusano of Sant’Angelo dei Lombardi, creating beautiful presepi (Italian manger scenes) is more than a passion—it is a way to give glory to Christ all year long. I first met Donato last December when I saw one of his beautiful creations on a Facebook group, “Irpinia Terra di Mille Tradizioni.” I was struck by the extreme craftsmanship i...

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