Every time a new article, podcast, or post about the Feast of the Seven Fishes is published, my friends, colleagues, and followers start tagging me and sending me questions. Misleading and incorrect information about the tradition abound, so I decided to share what I know in a post, instead of writing back to everyone individually. Many articles criticize the holiday, accuse of being "non-Italian,"but then give recipes for it anyway 😉. Here's what I know:
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| Photo by @Lobby4U |
- Eating fish and seafood on Christmas Eve is popular in Italy. Recently many food experts have been saying that this tradition isn't really Italian. While MANY Italians eat fish and seafood-based menus on Christmas Eve. It is only the number of dishes that is not so important in modern day Italy, but significant with the Italian American community and Italians living abroad. This great article in L'Italo-Americano explains. Perhaps living apart from Italy was what inspired the need for a strict rule, but the trend is growing so rapidly, that it wouldn't surprise me if it didn't become "a thing" in Italy in the next few years.
- History. This is a ritual that began in many fishing
communities and with families who wanted to enjoy a large Christmas Eve cenone before taking communion at Midnight Mass. It was forbidden to eat meat prior to consuming the Eucharist at Mass - so the Feast of the Seven Fishes enabled people to enjoy a holiday dinner prior to the morning of Christmas Day. In addition to being enjoyed as "abstinence food" by Catholics, seafood itself was celebrated in the Mediterranean region for millennia. You can read more in this American Food Roots article I was quoted in.
Photo by @Lobby4U - The Feast of the Seven Fishes is widely practiced
by the Italian-American community. There are no pre-set types of fish or seafood that must be included - cooks can use whichever types of fish they choose. Prix-Fixe restaurant menus are causing a renaissance of the custom, and many younger Italian-Americans, and non-Italians are happy to reclaim it.
- The number "7" was significant even in pre-Christian times. When celebrating Christmas, it is used to signify the 7 Sacraments. Some people make 9 courses - to represent the holy trinity x 3. Others make 13 to represent the 12 apostles plus Jesus. My theory is that the 7 is more widespread because it is the easiest to prepare. As I tell my students, while seven courses seems daunting to many Americans, it is a small number, especially for a holiday meal by my Calabrian family's standards.
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| Photo by @Lobby4U |
Last week I taught two different Feast of the Seven Fishes menus - one for a chef's table demonstration, and the other for a hands-on cooking class. Each menu was slightly different with new additions from the menu I did at National Organization of Italian Women fundraiser a few years ago.
Since a lot of home cooks are intimidated by cooking seafood and seven separate courses, I get more requests for this particular class than many others. For that reason, I like to create a delicious menu that can be enjoyed as one menu but also taste great on their own for regular meals. Once ingredients are purchased and prepped, the entire menu can be made in two hours.
FEAST OF SEVEN FISHES MENU
Sicilian Seafood Salad
Olive, Tuna, and Tomato Crostini
Citrus Infused Sea Scallops
Stuffed Baby Calamari in Tomato Sauce
Spicy Seafood Couscous
Slow Roasted Citrus Tuna with Fennel
Swordfish and Eggplant Bundles
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| Photo by @Lobby4U |
Sicilian Seafood Salad/Insalata di frutti di mare
Recipe from The Italian Diabetes Cookbook. This easy salad can be an appetizer, entrée, or second course and is meant to make the most of whatever the local fishmonger has to offer.
Serves: 6
Ingredients:
2 lbs assorted seafood (small shrimp, bay scallops, calamari)
zest and juice of 1 lemon
1 TBSP extra-virgin olive oil
Coarsely ground pepper
1 small yellow onion, sliced
¼ cup Castelvetrano olives, save 2 tablespoons brine
1 cup grape tomatoes, halved
½ cup celery, diced
1 cup fresh Italian parsley
Bring a large pot of water to a boil over high heat.
Add seafood and blanche in boiling water, uncovered, until shrimp is pink the scallops and calamari are opaque, approximately 2 minutes. Drain in a colander and immediately transfer to a bowl of ice and cold water to stop cooking.
To prepare the dressing, in a small bowl, whisk together the lemon juice, oil, reserved oil brine, and pepper.
Meanwhile, combine seafood with chopped olives, tomatoes, celery, and parsley in a large bowl. Toss with dressing and season with salt and pepper. Let stand at least 15 minutes before serving to allow flavors to marry.
Olive, Tuna, and Tomato Crostini
Recipe adapted from Sicilian Style Tuna in The Mediterranean Diabetes Cookbook. Fresh tuna and swordfish are plentiful around the shores of Sicily. This recipe combines many of Sicily’s delicacies; olive oil, tuna, tomatoes, and olives all in one dish. This dish is impressive enough for guests, yet simple enough to make on the busiest of weeknights.
Serves 16 as a passed appetizer
Ingredients:
1/8 cup extra-virgin olive oil
2 tuna steaks (4 ounces each)
1 small yellow onion, thinly sliced
1/2 cup diced tomatoes
4 good quality olives, pitted and diced
¼ tsp. salt and freshly ground pepper
1 long Italian filoni (baguette), cut into 16 very thin slices
Preparation:
1. Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add tuna steaks and cook 2-3 minutes per side until golden. Remove tuna from pan and place on a platter. Set aside.
2. Add onions and olives to pan. Sautee, uncovered, on medium heat, until onions are translucent (5 -7 minutes).
4. Add tomatoes, stir well to combine, and cook, uncovered for 2-3 minutes.
5. Add tuna steaks back to the frying pan, cover and cook for 3-5 minutes per side until tuna is done.* Remove tuna from pan onto a serving platter.
6. Arrange toasted bread on platters. Cut each tuna steak into 8 thin slices. Top bread with tuna and onion/tomato/olive mixture.
Healthy Living Tradition:
Serve tuna steaks on whole wheat buns in place in place and serve for lunch as an elegant and healthy alternative to hamburgers or tuna salad sandwiches.
Citrus Infused Sea Scallops/(Capesante in padella)
Serves: 4 | Serving Size: Approximately 1/4 pound scallops
Prep Time: 5 minutes (plus 1 hour marinating time) | Cooking Time: 10 minutes
This recipe is from The Italian Diabetes Cookbook. These scallops are delicious on their own or tossed into a salad or pasta dish. If you don’t have time to marinate the scallops, simply toss them with the marinade ingredients before frying. The recipe will still work well; the only difference is that the scallops will have a slightly less citrusy flavor at the end.
In the U.S., scallops are sometimes soaked in the preservative trisodium phosphate (TSP), which makes them weigh more, and consequently cost more. TSP also makes scallops exude moisture as they cook, thereby causing them to steam rather than sear properly. Look for scallops that are labeled “dry,” meaning not soaked in TSP.
Juice and zest from 2 lemons
1 TBSP extra-virgin olive oil
¼ tsp. freshly ground black pepper
1 clove garlic, minced
1 lb. dry scallops, cleaned
1 roasted red pepper, cut into tiny pieces
1. Make the marinade by combining lemon juice and zest, olive oil, pepper, and garlic in a large, shallow bowl or baking dish. Mix well to combine. Add scallops to the marinade, cover, and refrigerate 1 hour.
2. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Drain scallops and place in skillet. Cook 4–5 minutes per side, until cooked through.
3. Arrange scallops on a serving platter or individual plates. Garnish with pieces of roasted peppers and serve.
Wine
Prosecco
Spicy Seafood Couscous/(Cuscus alla mandorla Trapanese)
Serves: 4 | Serving Size: 6 ounces
Prep Time: 10 minutes | Cooking Time: 25 minutes
This recipe is from The Italian Diabetes Cookbook. Trapani has been an important fishing port in the Egadi Islands since antiquity. The Arab influence in this Sicilian town has made couscous one of its local specialties. Called the “food of peace,” couscous is the star of a yearly international Sicilian festival that hosts cooks from four continents to celebrate this ingredient. The pesto in this recipe is a traditional Trapani-style pesto, made with almonds and tomatoes instead of pine nuts and basil like its Ligurian counterpart.
1/4 cup blanched almonds, lightly toasted, divided
1 pint small cherry tomatoes, 12 reserved whole and the rest quartered, divided
1/4 cup grated parmigiano-reggiano cheese
2 cloves garlic, peeled
1 cup basil leaves, roughly chopped, plus more for garnish
½ tsp. crushed red chile flakes
1/8 cup good-quality extra virgin olive oil
1 cup couscous
1 1/4 cups Homemade Vegetable Stock (page 287)
1 lb mussels, scrubbed and rinsed
1. Put 1/4 cup almonds in a food processor fitted with the blade attachment; pulse them 15–20 times until roughly chopped. Add the quartered tomatoes, cheese, garlic, basil, and red chile flakes. Pulse the machine 8–10 times. Then, with the machine running, use the feed tube to slowly add up to 1/8 cup olive oil in a slow, steady stream. The resulting pesto should be quite grainy but not too chunky and not too wet. You may not need all the oil. Set pesto aside.
2. Heat the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil in a saucepan over high heat. Add the couscous and cook, stirring often, until toasted, about 5 minutes.
3. Add the stock, cover the pan, and reduce heat to low. Add mussels. Simmer 15–20 minutes until all the liquid has been absorbed. Fluff with a fork and toss in 1/4 cup tomato pesto.
4. Garnish with remaining whole tomatoes, 2 tablespoons chopped almonds, and a few basil leaves. Serve.
•Italian Living Tradition•
Try this delicious pesto variation on spaghetti or freshly grilled or broiled tuna for a vibrant dish that’s as healthy as it is delicious.
Wine
Nerello Mascalese
FRESH TUNA STEAKS /TONNO AGLI AGRUMI
Serves: 4 | Serving Size: 1 (4-ounce) tuna steak
Prep Time: 10 minutes | Cooking Time: About 45 minutes
Recipe from The Mediterranean Diabetes Cookbook. Fresh tuna and swordfish are plentiful around the shores of Sicily. This recipe combines many of Sicily’s delicacies—olive oil, citrus, capers, anchovies, and mint—all in one delicious dish. This dish is impressive enough for guests, yet simple enough to make on the busiest of weeknights. Serve it with Marinated Eggplant Salad (page 202) and Sicilian olives for an authentic weeknight meal.
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
4 (4-oz each) tuna steaks
1 lrge. yellow onion, thinly sliced
1 TBSP capers packed in water, drained and rinsed well
8 oil-packed anchovy fillets, drained and rinsed well
1 bulb fennel, thinly sliced, a few fronds reserved for garnish
3/4 cup freshly squeezed orange juice (2 oranges)
½ cup water
¼ tsp. freshly ground black pepper
1. Heat olive oil in a very large skillet over medium-high heat. Add tuna steaks and cook 2–3 minutes per side until golden. Remove tuna from pan and place on a platter. Set aside.
2. Add onions, capers, and anchovies to the skillet. Stir, and break up the anchovies with a wooden spoon. Add fennel slices. Sauté, uncovered, over medium heat until onions begin to caramelize (about 10–12 minutes). Add orange juice, water, and pepper. Stir well to combine, and cook, uncovered, for 3–4 minutes.
3. Add tuna steaks back to the skillet, cover, and cook for 3 minutes per side until tuna is done.
4. Remove tuna from skillet to a serving platter. Pour sauce over tuna, and arrange onions around the top and sides of platter. Sprinkle finely chopped fennel fronds over the top of the dish. Serve warm.
seafood. The sweet, floral notes of the juice pair well with rich, heavier types of seafood.
BRAISED, STUFFED CALAMARI WITH TOMATO SAUCE/
CALAMARI RIPIENI IN SALSA DI POMODORO
Serves: 4 | Serving Size: 4 squid and 1/2 cup sauce
Prep Time: 10 minutes | Cooking Time: About 35 minutes
Recipe from The Italian Diabetes Cookbook. This traditional southern Italian recipe often uses a variety of calamari called totani—which look like regular calamari except their fins are located near their tails. They are prepared in the same fashion as squid, so they are interchangeable in recipes. See Italian Living Tradition for squid-cleaning techniques.
Because some supermarkets don’t regularly stock squid, I suggest calling first to make sure it is available at your local market. Some stores stock frozen varieties year-round. Note that they may need to be cleaned (tentacles and face removed) before proceeding with recipe.
2 TBSPS extra virgin olive oil, divided
1 med yellow onion, finely chopped
10 oz. fresh baby spinach or kale
1/4 cup arborio rice
1/4 cup freshly chopped basil, parsley, or a combination of both
½ tsp. unrefined sea salt
¼ tsp. freshly ground black pepper
Dash crushed red chile flakes
1 lb. baby squid, cleaned and tentacles removed but reserved, divided
2 cups Fresh Tomato Sauce (page 228) or tomato purée
1. Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a very large, wide skillet over medium heat. Add onion and sauté until golden, about 5 minutes.
2. Add spinach or kale, rice, basil and/or parsley, salt, pepper, and red chile flakes, and sauté for 3–5 minutes. Take stuffing mixture off heat and allow to cool slightly.
3. Using your fingers, or a very small demitasse spoon, stuff calamari bodies 3/4 of the way full with stuffing. Secure top with a toothpick, leaving a little bit of room between the toothpick and the top of the stuffing for the rice to expand while cooking.
4. Heat remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large frying pan over medium heat. Brown calamari on all sides. If you need to brown the squid in batches, simply brown half, transfer to a plate, and add the other half with additional olive oil.
5. Add Fresh Tomato Sauce or tomato purée and calamari tentacles to pan. Turn stuffed calamari over and spoon sauce over to coat. Cover, and simmer on low until cooked through, approximately 10–20 minutes. Serve warm.
•Italian Living Tradition•
To clean fresh, whole calamari, cut off the end with the tentacles and beak; remove and discard the beak and set the tentacles aside. Hold on to what is left of the head (the area with the eyes) and pull it out of the body, removing the internal organs. If you want the squid ink, carefully separate the ink sac and set it aside. Rinse the body cavity, reaching in with a finger and inverting the tube to make sure it is completely clean. Wine: Frascati
Sicilian Swordfish Bundles/Involtini di Pesce Spada
Yield: 4 servings
Recipe from The Italian Diabetes Cookbook. Swordfish is one of the most traditional fish in the southern Italian diet. Although it can be eaten at any time of year, it is often a part of the Feast of the Seven Fishes custom celebrated on Christmas Eve.
4 TBSPS extra-virgin olive oil, divided
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup chopped boxed tomatoes, such as Pomi brand
1 cup strained boxed tomatoes, such as Pomi brand
4 TBSPS toasted pine nuts, divided
2 TBSPS freshly chopped basil
1/2 tsp. unrefined sea salt or salt, divided
1/8 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
Dash of crushed dried red chili flakes
2 boneless swordfish fillets (3/4 pound or 340 g), placed in freezer for 30 minutes for easier slicing
2 TBSPS Fresh Bread Crumbs (see page XXX)
2 TBSPS (15 g) grated Pecorino Romano
2 TBSPS raisins, soaked in warm water for 20 minutes and drained
1 TBSP finely chopped onion
2 TBSP chopped fresh, flat-leaf Italian parsley, divided
1/2 cup finely chopped roasted or boiled eggplant cubes
Heat 2 tablespoons (30 ml) of olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the garlic and cook until it releases its aroma, 30 to 60 seconds—do not let garlic turn brown.
Stir in the chopped and strained tomatoes, 2 tablespoons (18 g) pine nuts, basil, 1/4 teaspoon salt, pepper, and chili flakes, stir, and cover. Reduce heat to low and simmer for 5 minutes.
With a filleting knife, carefully and neatly slice the swordfish fillets crosswise once into about 1/8-inch thick slices. Cut each piece in half to make 4 pieces.
Combine the remaining 2 tablespoons (30 ml) of olive oil, bread crumbs, Pecorino, raisins, remaining pine nuts, onion, parsley, and eggplant in a small bowl, and mix well to combine.
Place the fish pieces on a work surface covered with waxed paper or on a large plastic cutting board, and spread one tablespoon of the bread crumb mixture on each piece of fish. Press down firmly with your hands, so that the filling sticks.
Carefully tuck in the sides of fish. The sides must be firmly tucked in so that the filling doesn’t escape. Starting at the wide end, roll up the fish, completely encasing the filling. Use toothpicks or skewers to secure the rolls.
Slowly remove lid from tomato sauce and add the rolls into simmering sauce. Cover and cook for 15 to 20 minutes, turning once, or until fish is cooked through.
Transfer the fish to a serving platter, remove skewers, and top with the remaining sauce.
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