If you’re part of an Italian family, know an Italian family or have a favorite Italian restaurant, you’re probably gearing up for Christmas Eve and the famous Italian-American tradition of the Feast of the Seven Fishes 🐟🍤! Rooted in the Italian (as in Italy, not my hometown) tradition of eating seafood on Christmas Eve, this Americanized tradition has grown into a abbondanza-ized American meal. The “seven” part is highly variable. It can mean seven separate dishes of seafood, seven types of seafood or maybe one big pot of seven types of seafood.

Continue reading Clams Oreganata: Perfect for Seven Fishes at Our Italian Table.

Our paternal grandfather, Giuseppe Becci, was born and raised in the little village of Scapezzano in the region of Marche, Italy, which sits not far from the Adriatic Sea. The beautiful breezes from the sea wash up the hill to the village, bringing a fresh, briny aroma that scents the air like perfume. The sea is teaming with fish of all varieties and a traditional soup that can be found up and down the coast of Marche is the brodetto.

Continue reading A Sicilian-influenced Monkfish Brodetto at Our Italian Table.

I was re-arranging my pantry recently and found a package of Sardinian fregola that I had purchased at Altomonte’s Italian market (https://altomontes.com/) a few years back. I had visited Sardinia back in 2008 and returned home with a few treasured recipes that have become family favorites. My mouth instantly watered (ho l’acquolina in bocca! – love that phrase in Italian) thinking about the dish that I typically make with this Sardinian speciality and it was game on for dinner.

Continue reading Sardinian Fregola with Clams at Our Italian Table.

It’s summer in L.A. and it’s HOT! It’s also a time to be celebrating seafood, given that we just returned from ten weeks in coastal Italia and we ate the highest quality seafood you can imagine. My go to fish store in Italy was Pescheria Moreno in Senigallia. Everything they had was super fresh and local and the husband and wife team who owned the place had great ideas for preparing each kind of fish.

Continue reading Charred Octopus Salad with other Goodies at Our Italian Table.

During my boyhood in New Jersey, summer meant trips to the Jersey shore, and the Jersey shore meant clams! From then till now, to me summer means clams and clams mean summer. While clams alone in a simple broth would be appetizing all by themselves, this simple but delicious stew is even better—and barely anymore trouble. Adding fennel sets off the clams with a licorice taste—another of childhood summers’ favorite flavors—while the sausage adds richness and a fuller range of spices, especially when you select a top-quality sausage, ideally one made by your local butcher.

Continue reading Summer Clam Guazzetto at Our Italian Table.

With Christmas Eve fast approaching, it’s time to starting thinking about that uniquely Italian-American tradition of the Seven Fishes. Probably born from the Italian tradition of not eating meat on Christmas Eve, this American tradition was influenced by the abundance of seafood available far away from the coasts. Loosely interpreted as either seven courses of fish, or seven types of fish, this meal is a big draw for non-Italian non-cooking people seeking out a Christmas Eve invite.

Continue reading Mussels and Shells in a Saffron Tomato Soup at Our Italian Table.

Octopus is finally available again in seafood stores in Southern California. In Italy, being able to buy freshly fished octopus is nearly a birthright. Along the entire coast of the southern portion of the Italian peninsula—from Naples on the Mediterranean Sea to Marche on the Adriatic—and all the way around Sicily, the seas are full of octopus! Each region has specific preparations that they call their own, and one common dish shared by most regions, with regional variations, is the octopus salad.

Continue reading Drunken Octopus Salad at Our Italian Table.

While we were in Marche, Italy this spring, we had stuffed calamari prepared by my cousin’s wife, Maria, several times. These beautiful squid from the Adriatic were stuffed with a simple mixture of their own tentacles (chopped), breadcrumbs, parsley, salt-and-pepper and a little olive oil. Then they were baked to a golden brown with a simple sauce of olive oil and a little tomato puree.

It’s been hard to replicate this here at home because most of the time the squid available at local markets is tiny compared to the more ample squid found in Italy.

Continue reading Calamari ripieni alla marchigiana (Stuffed squid) at Our Italian Table.

I’m in Italy!—in the region of Marche, along the Adriatic sea—staying in the town where my grandfather grew up (he immigrated to America in 1911, at age 22). I’m staying with my cousins—also named Becci—the branch of my grandfather’s and my family that remains here in this beautiful area—near the seaside resort town of Senigallia. From their hilltop town, Scapezzano, one has panoramic views of both sea and mountains, stretching away forever. This time of year most of the rolling hills that stretch out below this small hill town are bright green with wheat, or fava beans, or even artichokes; others are a rich brown where an early harvest has been followed by plowing to ready a picturesque field for a summer planting.

Continue reading Seppie con piselli (Cuttlefish with peas) at Our Italian Table.

Ciao, tutti! As I write this post, my brother and Mark are relaxing in the little village of Scapezzano, Italy – in the very house where my grandfather was born. And they are there for SIX.WEEKS!  So incredibly glad for them to be able to pull away from the daily grind back in LA and strengthen the roots with our dear Italian family.  As I write, they are in the village where our ancestors for so many generations roamed the very same streets, shopped in the very same port, and gazed out at the very same beautiful Adriatic sea.  

Continue reading Cooking Le Marche Style: Vongole in Potacchio at Our Italian Table.