The Feast of the Seven Fishes Petragnani Style

Christmas Eve and the Feast of the Seven Fishes

My mom recalls her Christmas Eve as a table full of Calamari (calamod), Scrungilli, Octopus, Baccala 2 ways, and Smelts. She was never a fan of fish but Catholics would not eat meat on Christmas Eve so she would wait until midnight and have a salami sandwich. 

When I asked my dad about what he remembers of Christmas Eve he recounted his mom making smelts.  He proceeded to explain that their (adult) neighbor would come over and try to eat them all before my dad got back from church.

Christmas Eve for me used to mean waking up at 4 am and heading down to Isgro's Pasticceria to purchase a few dozen Cannoli, some Biscotti, a Yule Log and sometimes a Cream Puff Tree. In order to purchase these though we had to wait in a line usually already wrapped around the block at 4:30 or 5:00 am. At least Santa and Mrs. Claus walked the line offering samples of pastries, coffee, and shots of Anisette and Amaretto. Sadly we laid this tradition to rest a few years ago. Between pregnancies and little ones it just didn't make sense to keep going downtown and spending 3+ hours waiting for pastries. 

So we did most of our running around on the 23rd. We made our run to 9th Street (The Italian Market) to get our fresh ground Beef, Veal, and Pork for Meatballs from Esposito's. We would normally go to DiBruno or Claudio's for our Christmas Appetizers but both had lines that extended out to the sidewalks so Talluto's  was our stop for some cheeses, meats, and olives. Of course you can't have the cheese and meat without some crusty Italian Bread so we grabbed our numerous loaves of Sarcone's and headed back to the burbs. 

Christmas Eve morning consisted of a trip to a local Italian Bakery that was originally from South Philly. (Another reason not to stand in line for hours on Christmas Eve). Viso's has great Cannoli  and only takes about 15 minutes even on a busy holiday. Purchasing seafood was a whole different story! We get our crab cakes from Hill's Seafood and bring them to my aunt's every year as a contribution to the seven fishes. These are THE BEST crab cakes but on holidays the place is insanely busy! They were serving #90 and I grabbed #41.... INSANE, but totally worth it! 

So this brings us to Christmas Eve Dinner. With most families Italian and non, fish is part of the Christmas Eve Feast. There are numerous explanations behind this tradition. Despite where its roots began for Italians,  it is a tradition for my family because it is what my parents do and what their parents did and so on. 

There were years that we visited various family members on Christmas Eve but for almost all of the Christmas Eves that I am able to remember we only went to my Aunt Roe's. She has been preparing the Feast of the Seven Fish (or 8).

This year's fish were :

1. Mussels

2. Crab (Cakes and  w/ Spaghetti Aglio e Olio) 

3. Smelts

4. Scallops

5. Salmon

6. Shrimp

7. Baccala

8(ish). Tuna Dip

 

The recipes are very simple as the Christmas Feast is usually much heavier and more involved.

Mussels

2 Bags of Mussels

2 Cloves Garlic

1 Tbsp Garlic Salt

1 Stick of Butter cut into pads;

1 Can Beer

Clean de-beard mussels discard ones that are opened or damaged

Put mussels in a large stock pot and pour beer over them

Add Garlic (minced or sliced), garlic salt

Spread pads of butter on top of mussels, cover and heat on med-high

Steam until all mussels are open if a few do not open discard

You can sprinkles some fresh parsley on top and garnish with a lemon wedge

 

 

 

Spaghetti with Crab Aglio e Olio

 

1 lb Spaghetti or Linguine

1 can crab meat

1 medium onion diced

3 cloves of garlic diced

1/4 cup olive oil

salt to taste

Locatelli

Bring large salted pot of water to boil

(Cook macaroni according to instructions on box or bag)

While water is boiling and macaroni is cooking prepare oil

Saute garlic, onion, and crab meat in olive oil over medium heat

Once onions are translucent remove from heat

Drain macaroni and toss with oil, garlic, onions, and crab add salt to taste and about 1/4 cup of Locatelli (you can add more- I prefer a lot of cheese!)

Make sure all of the strands are well coated and sprinkle top with more cheese

 

 

 

 

Smelts

 

1 lb of Smelts headless and tail-less

Flour

Salt

Olive Oil

 

Rinse Smelts and dust with flour and salt

Add to a pan with olive oil over medium heat

Cook smelts until they split open to expose the backbone

Remove from pan and put on a platter lined with paper towels to drain

 

 

 

 

 

Scallops

1 lb Sea Scallops (do not cheap out and get the Bay Scallops!)

1/2 stick butter cut into small squares

1-2 cloves of garlic diced or minced

1/4 tsp salt

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees

Place scallops in shallow pan with a 1/4" of water on the bottom

Put small butter square on each scallop (you may not need the full amount)

Top with garlic and salt

Put uncovered in oven and cook 15-20mins or until they start to slightly brown on the edges

 

 

 

Salmon (Prepared by my mother-in-law with some amazing wild Alaskan Salmon)

 

1 Salmon fillet sliced

Season with black pepper salt and olive oil or butter and a squeeze of lemon (optional)

 

Bake at 350 for 20-25mins

 

 

 

 

 

 

Shrimp

2 lbs. Shrimp (we used thawed but you can use frozen, they steam better when thawed)

Steamed until pink in Old Bay and water

Once pink remove immediately toss in more old bay

 

 

 

 

 

Baccala

 

1 salted dried Cod

Olive Oil

Lemon Juice

Salt

Pepper

Parsley

You need to soak the Baccala for 36-48 hours in water to rehydrate.

Start by cutting the cod into pieces and rinsing the salt off of the surface

Submerge fish in water - you will need to change the water a few times per day

Allow the fish to soak in a cool place

Right before using peel off the skin and pull out any bones

Flake the meat and season with a light coating of olive oil, lemon juice, salt pepper, and parsley.

Dish is served cold.

 

And since this is Contessa's first Christmas Eve, I had to share my little ones enjoying a Christmas Eve that I also celebrated the same way when I was their age! Giovanni just loved every minute of it this year!

I will be sharing our crazy Christmas extravaganza and a ton of recipes from it in the next few days. Hope you enjoyed your holiday and hearing about ours!

 

Buon Natale!