​Is it really the end of March and we have yet to celebrate Easter? It’s incredibly late this year, and, as I love Easter, perhaps more so than Christmas, I am really itching for it to get here! Facebook recently reminded me that last year, I made this delicious Easter bread. It made me yearn for the holiday even more. Easter resembles all that is good in the world, doesn’t it? Spring weather, renewal, and new hope. The birds chirping, tulips blooming and we’re all filled with a new sense of optimism and assurance.
 
I grew up eating this bread (or cuzzupa in Calabrian dialect) every Easter. It would actually start a week or two before the holiday and my mother would either make it or buy it at the local pasticcerie. Sometimes she would make it glazed, sometimes just with a sprinkle of sugar on top, either way, my sister and I would devour it for breakfast and afternoon merenda, or after school snack. As if this yummy bread wasn’t enough by itself, my sister and I would spread Nutella on top. Yup, talk about making a good thing great! I am very ashamed to admit it, that practice has not stopped in my adulthood. Yes, I still smear it with Nutella! Although I no longer eat it for weeks leading up to Easter, but rather just for a few days around the holiday. And if time permits, I have been known to make it for Palm Sunday too. #golosa
 
This bread is not overly sweet, if you don’t add the icing and the Nutella, that is! It tastes a bit like brioche and challah bread. It goes great by itself, or simply toasted with some butter and / or jam. Topped with cinnamon sugar is also a great combo. Last year, I made it twice, for Palm Sunday then again for Easter. You’ll see the two results below. I am torn about whether I like the colors on the eggs. I think this year, I will skip coloring them and use just white. No matter how I try, the color always bleeds into the bread, which makes it look so artificial and a bit messy. Or perhaps I’ll make two, one with colored eggs and one with white, so I can best decide which I prefer. It’s a dirty job, research really, but someone has go to do it!
 
Tip: You do not need to boil the eggs first, they will bake in the oven, just be careful not to crack them. Also, the eggs are mostly for decoration only. You can eat them the same day you bake the bread, but once you leave the bread out a few hours, the eggs do spoil. So either leave the eggs on the bread and trash them as you eat the bread, or remove them and put them in the fridge. Since the eggs are really what ads to the appeal of the bead, I just leave them there and trash the eggs when the bread is finished.  

Cuzzupa  Calabrese (aka: Italian Easter Bread)
 
2 ¼ teaspoons rapid rise yeast
1 ¼  cups scalded milk, cooled
pinch of salt
5 1/2 tablespoons butter, softened
2 eggs, beaten
1/2 cup sugar
3 ½  cups flour (the flour is approximate, you may need to go up to 4 to 4 1/2 cups) 
 
1 egg, slightly beaten
3 uncooked dyed or undyed eggs
 
Icing – Optional
1  to 1 ½ cups of confectionary sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 – 4 tablespoons of milk
decorative sprinkles 
 
Instructions:

1. In a large mixing bowl, combine yeast, milk, salt, softened butter, eggs and sugar. Mix until just combined.
2. Add half the flour and beat until smooth using a dough hook.  
3. Slowly add the rest of flour to form a stiff dough. Do not worry about the exact amount, just keep adding until it is no longer sticky. 
4. Knead until smooth with either dough hook or turn out on board and knead by hand.
5. Place in a bowl that has been greased with 1 tablespoon of oil. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about an hour, depending on the temperature in your kitchen. (I place mine by the fireplace!) 
6. Punch dough down and divide into 3 pieces. Roll each piece to form a thick rope about 12 inches long. Form a braid, pinching the ends, and loop into a circle.
7. Place on a greased baking sheet or sheet that has been lined with parchment paper.
8. Cover and let rise a second time, until double, about 45 minutes to one hour again.
9. Brush the bread with beaten egg wash. In the middle of the bread ring, gently place an egg, making an indentation with the egg. Continue with the other two eggs.
10. Bake at 350 degrees until golden - about 40 minutes. Cool on rack.
11. Optional: While the bread is cooling prepare the icing by mixing the confectionary sugar, vanilla and the milk. Add milk one tablespoon at a time as you may end up not needed more than a few tablespoons. 
12. Brush the bread with the icing using a pastry brush and top with sprinkles, if desired.

 

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​We’re in the middle of March and for Italians, March means a few things. For one thing, we’re in Lent, so chances are, Catholics have Easter on their minds. But before that, we’re looking forward to celebrating the Feast of St. Joseph, or La Festa San Giuseppe, in Italian. Celebrated on March 19th, the feast honors Joseph, husband to the Virgin Mary and earthly father to Jesus. It is also the day in which Italy celebrates Father’s Day. And if your name is Joseph or Josephine, you will also be celebrating your “onomastico.”  An onomastico is the celebration of your “name” day. St. Joseph, St. Francis, St. Anthony, St. Anne, St. Catherine and so forth, are all celebrated name days in Italy. And while not celebrated with the same grandiose celebration of a birthday, an onomastico is an occasion for Italians to celebrate with family, friends and of course, a cake or pastries.
 
While St. Joseph and Father’s Day are celebrated all over Italy, the celebration of St. Joseph is more prominent in Southern Italy, particularly Sicily. Considered by Sicilians as the Patron Saint of their region, St. Joseph is credited to have saved Sicily’s residents during one of their many devastating droughts. Tradition has it that residents prayed to St. Joseph for rain. The rain came, and as such, their spring crops were spared from being destroyed, preventing a widespread famine for Sicily. It is believed that this is the reason the celebration is held in March. 

​A traditional “alter” or “St. Joseph’s Table” is also popular in Italy. Placed in private homes, churches, social clubs and even cafes, creating a table for St. Joseph is commonplace. Many Italians brought that tradition with them to the States and while it is less common these days, it is something older Sicilians still take great pride in. The table is filled with gifts, both of food and sentimental ones, offered to the saint in thanksgiving for prayers answered. Generally, a statue of St. Joseph is placed at the head of the table and is surrounded by gifts of various foods, citrus fruits and of course, breads. On the feast day, an open house is held, inviting friends and family to join in the celebration of eating the gifts left on the table. Fava beans, one of the spared crops, represent good luck and abundance, so be sure to add them to your table for March 19th.
 
As with anything in Italy, the menu for a St. Joseph celebration is rooted in tradition. Because the holiday falls during lent, meat is generally not eaten on the holiday of St. Joseph. Foods containing breadcrumbs, or the “poor man’s parmigiano” are enjoyed. Joseph, as you might know, was a carpenter, so breadcrumbs are supposedly eaten to resemble the sawdust left behind after a day’s work in the carpenter’s shop. Lemons, like fava beans, are said to bring good luck, particularly to the single ladies looking for a husband. 

While relatively unknown to the non-Italian U.S. population, one city that widely celebrates this feast day is New Orleans. Louisiana used to be a popular arrival port for Sicilians and at one point, the now French Quarters were known as “Little Palermo.”  Celebrations occur, even to this day, with traditional foods and festivities.
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While fava beans, lemons, breads and seafood are frequently eaten on the feast day of San Giuseppe, and are certainly delicious; my all time favorite food to enjoy is the Zeppole di San Giuseppe. Found in any respectable Italian bakery, both in the States and in Italy, a zeppola is a pastry, almost resembling a cream puff, but fried, and tastier, if you ask me. After fried, the zeppola is cut in the middle and filled with various flavored creams or sweetened ricotta. It’s frequently topped with amarena, a sour cherry preserve, and dusted with confectionary sugar. Delicious by itself or enjoyed with a cup of espresso, if you do nothing else this upcoming holiday, be sure to enjoy a zeppola in honor of San Giuseppe and say a little prayer of thanksgiving for the gifts you have been granted. 

​A fun fact about San Giuseppe: Did you know that he’s the patron saint of realtors or anyone trying to sell a home? As with any tradition, its origin is very unclear. But if you’re trying to sell a home, be sure to buy a small statue of St. Joseph, and bury it upside down in your yard, preferably near flowers. As he is also the patron saint of “home life,” it is believed that he will quickly help anyone trying to sell a home if placed in a somewhat uncomfortable (upside down) position. His eagerness to be removed from there, will speed up the sale of your home!! After the sell of your home, be sure to dig the statue up and display it in your new place as a way to honor him and in thanksgiving for his assistance in the speedy sale of your house.
 
As you can see, there are a lot of traditions, superstitions and customs to Italian religious holidays. If nothing else, be sure to pick up a zeppola this week-end and celebrate the day in a very sweet way. 

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TUSCANY: MAY 1 - 8, 2019. Click here for all trip info and to sign up!
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