Italian Holiday Dishes & Meals

Spit-roasted game birds is Brescia's signature dish, and rightly so. They're very good, and bring joy to the table.

A well roasted bird is synonemous with Christmas Dinner, Thanksgiving dinner, and many other holidays and festive occasions. Here's a collection of recipes for roasted birds from around About.

Natale con i tuoi, la Pasqua con chi vuoi -- "Christmas at home and Easter with whomever you wish"is an old Italian saying. However, people have a way of returning to the hearth, and Easter is an occasion for far-flung families to reunite around a well-set table, renewing the bonds that tie. Traditions vary greatly from place to place, and here are some of my favorite Italian Easter recipes.

Lent is the 40 days before Easter, and is designated by the Catholic Church as a period of spiritual renewal, a time to prepare to celebrate Christ's resurrection. Contrary to popular opinion it's not a time of penance, but the Church does ask that people avoid meats out of respect for Jesus's sacrifice on the Cross, and to share the hardships of the poor. This is not to say one must go hungry; fish are allowed, as are vegetables and eggs, and there are many options to choose from.

Almost every town in Italy has some sort of Christmas cake, cookie, or pie. Here's a quick rundown of some of the best known, in order (roughly) of popularity. After all, all Christmas sweets are treats.

Italy has many Christmas sweets. Most are regional -- you'll get struffoli (fritters dipped in a honey syrup, decorated with spangles, and arranged in a wreath) in Naples, Panforte (a medieval fruitcake made with honey) in Siena, and caggionetti (fried ravioli stuffed with chestnuts, chocolate, and other delights) in the Abruzzo -- but Pandoro...

Italians have only recently begun to celebrate Halloween. However, the Italian Memorial day is November 2, and almost every region has some sort of sweet to celebrate it.

Easter is one of the most important Italian holidays, and has many traditions associated with it. Some suggestions.

In Italy Online was one of the first sites dedicated to Italy, and continues to be one of the best, with all sorts of invaluable suggestions. A must if you're planning a trip, and great for armchair travel too.

Avoiding (or lessening) the pain if you overdo it on New Year's Eve.

Saint Joseph, the man who broke a Sicilian drout, thus gaining the people's unswerving devotion, is celebrated on March 19.

Neapolitan fritters for San Giuseppe!

Tasty ways to celebrate il Santo degli inamorati, and tasting notes for the 1995 vintage of Montevertine, one of Tuscany's great wineries.

Fritters, cenci (frappe, bugie etc) and other delights to gladden the heart in the depths of Winter. And Lasagna too!

Roman Easter recipes.

Anthony Iannacone is an old fried with whom I have corresponded for years. His family is from Campania, and he has recently published a cookbook entitled Campania Region, An Italian Food Legacy. Among the many classic dishes from Campania is Pizza Rustica, and he has been kind enough to share it with us.

Rich, sumptuous dishes to celebrate Easter.

Passover recipes from Italy.

Lamb is intimately associated with Passover: Moses ordered his people to kill white lambs paint the doorways with its blood, and roast it and eat it with pane azzimo, unleavened bread, on the 14th day of the first month of Spring. Hence, I might add, the Italian tradition of lamb at Easter, and this is a Roman Jewish recipe.

A rich savory Easter pie made with a dozen eggs.

Makes a lot, so you can bring loaves as gifts.

This recipe is the original ham pie made by my father each year at Easter and Christmas," she writes, adding that her mother made it before he did. Extraordinarily rich, and looks very nice. From the Artisan.

How the holiday is celebrated in one of Europe's oldest Jewish neighborhoods, with notes on dishes and a list of Rome's best Jewish restaurants.

An artichoke and greens-based savory pie from Lorenza de'Medici. From the Artisan.

A glorious, eggy, cheesy savory pie from Lorenza De Medici, annotated by the folks at the Artisan

An Italian meal for the Day of Attonement.

Recipes for a Neapolitan-style fish-based Christmas Eve dinner.

Since Hanuka commemorates the miraculous oil that kept sacred flame of the Temple alight, it is custom to prepare fried foods. According to Giuliana Vitali Norsa, these potato-walnut frittelle, or latkes, are of oriental origin.

Recipes for Hanukkah, and thoughts on Italian Jewish cooking.

Baccalà natalizio. A tasty Baccala salad for Christmas eve, from la Lama Family Secrets. Also a recipe for smelt.

Verona's sweet Golden Bread, from La Lama Family Secrets. A nice, detailed recipe with info on procuring pans and such too.

Detailed and involved, but looks nice -- follows the traditional steps and will take several hours to make.

A simple recipe from Diana Rattray, About.Com's Southern Cuisine Guide, which is quite similar to one from Weight Watcher's. Well phrased instructions.