​We’re currently in that strange week between Christmas and New Years in which the days get confusing. You wake up in the morning wondering, is it a weekday or a week-end, a holiday, or not yet?  Whether you are working or not doesn’t easily help in adjusting to telling the days, it’s still an odd week!
 
With one major holiday behind us, it’s time to start thinking about food preparation for New Years! And, if for Italians, Christmas Eve has the majestic feast of the seven fishes, than New Years has its lentils…
 
Ooohh, the lentils…Hardly the glory that the seven fishes receive, but nonetheless, should be adhered to just as much as the fish on Christmas Eve. As such, lentils are a must for your New Years Day menu. Don’t we all go into the New Year with renewed confidence that no matter how great the previous year was; the one to come will be better, more prosperous and even luckier? Why not increase your odds by serving a hardy bowl of lentil soup?
 
What do lentils have to do with luck, you ask? Thought to resemble Roman coins, lentils symbolize money and prosperity and are the meal of choice for Italians in Italy, as well as Italians living here in the U.S., such as myself. But just lentils hardly make for a full meal, especially for Italians, so on New Years Day; they are generally paired with pork of some kind. Usually “cotechino” is served on January First, which very much resembles a large, stuffed sausage, requiring a bit of time to cook. Pork is considered lucky because its rotundness, richness and high-fat content, which can represent prosperity and wealth. I will likely be preparing a pork loin for New Years Day, easier than the cotechino and just as lucky!  
 
Other lucky foods include leafy greens, because they resemble paper cash (hey, there’s spinach in this soup!) and ring shaped cakes, because they resemble coming full circle, so the new one can begin. Try my orange and olive oil cake to really have a lucky new year!!   

Lentil, spinach and sausage soup
Serves 4
 
1 cup dry lentils
1 small onion, finely diced
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 tablespoons chopped parsley
2 – 3 carrots, peeled and thinly sliced
1 celery stalk, thinly sliced
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon salt
2 – 3 pre-cooked sausages, thinly sliced (choice of pork, chicken, sweet, hot)
1 cup canned tomato sauce
12- 16 oz fresh baby spinach, washed
½ large vegetable bullion cube
 
Directions

1. In a large saucepan or mixing bowl, add the lentils and add plenty of water until the lentils are well covered by at least 3 – 4 inches of water. Soak overnight.
2. When you ready to make the soup, drain the lentils and rinse them under cold, running water and set aside.
3. Start by making the soffritto for the soup. In a large soup pan set to low-medium heat, add the onion, garlic, parsley, carrots, celery, olive oil and salt and allow to sauté for several minutes until they become golden and fragrant.
4. Add the sausages and allow browning for about one minute.
5. Add the tomato sauce and simmer for an additional minute.
6. Add the lentils and spinach to the soup pan and add enough water to fully cover all the ingredients, about 6 cups, depending on the size of your soup pan.
7. When the soup comes to a full boil, add the vegetable bullion. Simmer over medium heat for 20 – 25 minutes, until the lentils are fully cooked.  Serve hot with some crusty bread; add grated Parmigiano cheese, if desired.

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​There are some cookies and desserts that are a bit pretentious. They call for a laundry list of ingredients, expensive nuts, numerous steps and hours of time. They are considered “special occasions” treats. Those are best saved for Thanksgiving, Christmas and Easter.
 
Then you have anginetti. The little, humble anginetti.
 
They are so easy and versatile, that I am almost guaranteed that when the mood strikes for something sweet, I am certain to have all the ingredients in the house. Don’t like or have lemon in the house? No problem, you can make these with orange, vanilla, anise, rum… They are surprisingly soft and airy that when scooping them out after they have been chilled, you might think that they will be hard, but they are not at all. So soft and melt in your mouth…They go great with a good cup of coffee or a nice, hot tea.
 
These are so easy and generally liked by everyone that these are perfect for those (dreaded!) office parties! Bring a tray of these and you’re sure to please all your co-workers and bosses. These can be baked a few days in advanced, stored in an airtight container and iced the day of your party or get-together.    

Lemon Anginetti - Yields 32 cookies
2 cups all-purpose flour
3 teaspoons baking powder
Zest of one lemon
Pinch of salt
1⁄2 cup sugar
1 stick butter, softened
3 large eggs
1 1⁄2 teaspoons lemon extract
 
Glaze
3 cups confectioners' sugar
2 – 4 teaspoons milk
1 teaspoon lemon extract
Sprinkles of your choosing
 
 
Directions:

1. In a medium mixing bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder, zest and salt and set aside.
2. In a stand mixer or hand-held mixer, cream together the sugar and butter.
3. Add eggs and the lemon extract and blend well.
4. Add flour mixture and continue mixing well until the dough is smooth and well blended. The dough will be a bit sticky.  
5. Cover with plastic wrap and chill the dough for at least one hour. You can chill it for up to eight hours.
6. When you’re ready to scoop the cookies, preheat the over to 350 degrees.
7. Using a small ice cream or cookie scoop to shape the cookies, drop dough onto cookie sheet, which has been lined with parchment paper. Space them several inches apart as they do spread.
8. Bake for about 17 -19 minutes. Set your timer at 16 minutes and start checking on them as all ovens vary. Cookies will look pale in color even though they are fully cooked so check the bottom for doneness.
9. Remove cookies from cookie sheets and to cool completely.
10. While the cookies are cooling, prepare the glaze by mixing confectionary sugar, milk and extract, mixing until icing is smooth. Icing should be a bit on the thick side, if you have added too much liquid, add a few more tablespoons of sugar and blend well.
11. Dip the tops of the cookies into the glaze, place on a cookie rack or parchment paper and top with sprinkles. Allow drying before plating. 

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What would an Italian Christmas be without Struffoli? It certainly would be lighter, that’s for sure! These little things are addictive, calorie filled, baby bombs of deliciousness and they are only permitted in my household at Christmastime. Why? Because there’s no restraint around them, so best to not make them too often!
 
As I love baking, I am always trying new things, inventing new desserts, consulting with mom (of course!) on what might work and what not, but there are a handful of staples you can’t mess around with at Christmas. Of course, got to have some biscotti, anise cookies, the pizzelle, butterballs, a jam crostata and the struffoli. Anything more than that and we’re just being greedy, which, of course, we are, no reason to hide it. Thankfully, the New Year is right around the corner and we all promise we will do better in the New Year, right? Ha! 
 
These are not so hard to make, but the do require a bit more work than some of my lazier recipes. But they are worth the effort, if only once a year. These are festive, as unlike the other treats mentioned above, these are only generally prepared around Christmas. While any week-end is worthy of a crostata or quick anise cookies, these are saved for just this time of year. So put aside an hour or two this holiday season and make your family some delicious Struffoli! 

Struffoli di Natale
 
Ingredients
4 Tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
3 ½ to 4 Cups all purpose flour
3 ½ Tablespoons sugar
3 large eggs + 1 egg yolk
Pinch of salt
Zest of 1 orange
1 – 2 Tablespoons orange juice / anisette liquor / limoncello
 
3 – 4 Cups vegetable or peanut oil for frying
 
Topping:
1 Cup honey
Decorative sprinkles of your choosing
 
Directions:

1. Start by melting the better, either in the microwave or stovetop, and set aside to cool off.
2. While the butter is cooling, prepare a large frying pan by filling it ¾ up with vegetable or peanut oil.
3. In a large bowl, add the flour (start with 3 ½ cups), sugar, eggs + yolk, salt, orange zest, cooled butter and liquid of your choosing. (My favorites include orange juice, anisette liquor or Limoncello.)
4. To start off, mix all ingredients with a whisk. When the ingredients have started to come together, transfer the batter to a counter and continue working it with your hands until dough comes together fully and resembles a ball of pizza dough. Depending on the size of the eggs, the dough may be a bit soft, if so, add the rest of the flour you have reserved.
5.  Wrap dough in a clean kitchen towel and let it rest at room temperature for 30 minutes.
6. After it has had some time to rest, divide the dough into 7 – 8 pieces and roll each piece into strands that are approximately 18 inches long and 1 inch round.
7. Cut off pieces of dough into small rounds resembling marbles. Continue with the rest of the dough.
8. After all the dough has been cut into small pieces, heat the oil to 350 – 375 degrees (use a frying thermometer if needed) and using a strainer or slotted spoon carefully drop some of the struffoli into the oil, being careful not to overcrowd the pan.
9. Fry struffoli for approximately 2 – 4 minutes, until they are all uniform in color. They should be neither too light, nor too dark. Transfer fried struffoli to a cookie sheet that has been lined with paper towels and continue frying the rest of the struffoli.  
10. After all the struffoli have been fried, prepare the honey. In a large sauté pan set over medium temperature, heat the honey until very warm but not boiling.
11. Carefully add the struffoli to the warmed honey and using a rubber spatula or wooden spoon, gently coat them with the honey until well coated.
12. Turn the heat off and transfer to serving bowl. Add decorative sprinkles, as desired. 

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Poor fruitcake..... It really does have a bad reputation....The mass-produced version is loaded with ingredients, some questionable at best, artificial at worst, and it has so much sugar that your dentist would cringe if he or she only knew...It's the butt of holiday jokes and hated by most people who are on the receiving end when gifted.

​But much like anything, the homemade version is so much better! But that's another story....Instead, let's focus on something most everyone loves: biscotti!

I have yet to meet anyone who doesn't like a good biscotto. Dipped in an espresso, anisette liquor or glass of vin santo, and you have yourself a most perfect treat!

But how can we change it up a bit and make them more "Christmassy?" Hazelnut and anise biscotti are great and all, but they are so "everyday" that they hardly scream "holidays." So how about some fruitcake biscotti!? Now, I know what you might be thinking.... But "I HATE fruitcake!" But unlike the dreaded fruitcake, these are delicious, crisp, but not rock hard, eggy and hit the spot during this time of year! Other than the candid fruit, the rest of the ingredients are very basic and you likely already have them in the fridge and pantry. For the fruit mix, I use Paradise Old English Fruit and Peel Mix. It's cut just right in size, very small and perfect for these biscotti. And amazingly, the mix is not overly sweet.

Double-baked, as biscotti usually are, these crisp up and get a bit chewy, from all the fruit. Left un-toasted, and they remain a bit cake-like and a bit softer.

Be sure to add these to your holiday baking list this year for a new twist on a classic treat! 

Fruitcake Biscotti
 
Ingredients
3 ½ tablespoons butter
3 cups flour + 1 tablespoon
1 ½ cups sugar
pinch of salt
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 ½ cups fruit cake mix (mix of candid citrus peel, cherries, pineapple)
2 eggs
4 egg yolks, divided
Zest of 1 orange
1 tablespoon honey
 
 Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Set your oven rack to the second to last position from the bottom. Prepare two baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
2. Place butter in a small, microwave proof container and melt butter fully in the microwave. Set aside to cool.
3. In a large bowl sift three cups of flour; add the sugar, pinch of salt and baking powder. Using a hand whisk or fork, mix the dry ingredients and set aside.
4.  In a medium bowl, add the candid fruitcake mix and add the 1 remaining tablespoon of flour. Coat the fruit pieces with the flour and set aside.
5. In a stand mixer, mix the two eggs and three egg yolks. Add the orange zest and honey and mix well.
6. Slowly add the flour mixture to the egg mixture, alternating with the cooled melted butter, mix all the ingredients well until combined.
7. When the biscotti dough is well mixed and all ingredients have been combined, reduce the speed of the mixer to the lowest speed and carefully add the candid fruit. It’s unlikely that all the fruit will be added by the mixer so move your dough to a floured counter and continue mixing by hand until all the fruit is well incorporated.
8. Divide the dough into three equal logs; weigh them on a measuring kitchen scale for accuracy, if needed.
9. Shape the dough into 14-inch logs and place them on the prepared cookie sheets. Do not add more than 2 logs per cookie sheet, as they tend to spread during baking. Slightly flatten the logs and shape so that they are as uniform in shape as possible.
10. With a fork, blend the remaining egg yolk and using a pastry brush, brush the logs with the egg. For added crunch, sprinkle some granulated sugar on top, if desired.
11. Bake biscotti for 23 – 25 minutes, until they are golden in color.
12. Remove from the oven and allow baked logs to cool for 5 minutes. Using a serrated bread knife, slice the logs into 1-inch biscotti and transfer them back to the cookie sheet, cut side down.
13. Lower the oven to 300 degrees and re-toast the biscotti for an additional 5 minutes. Alternatively, you can skip the double-bake and enjoy them a bit softer. Biscotti will last for several weeks when stored in an airtight container.

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Ready to make your 2019 Italian Travel Dreams come true? Consider joining us in one of our Culinary Adventures! We have three planned!
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TUSCANY: MAY 1 - 8, 2019. Click here for all trip info and to sign up!
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