Written by Margo Sorenson, advocate for Italian language education, and the author of thirty-one books for young readers. Her most recent Adult/YA novel, SECRETS IN TRANSLATION (Fitzroy Books, October 2018), takes place in Positano, Italy with plenty of Italian food being enjoyed!

“Italy is a beautiful country and people are warm and generous, a wonderful place that can be enjoyed in spirit through sharing meals of Italian food with friends and family.”

Margo Sorenson

Who can’t remember a favorite Italian meal? All it takes to call up that memory is the same mouth-watering scent, and we are transported back in time, engaged again by a rush of nostalgia. I recall with clarity the images stirred up of my childhood in Italy by the scent of fresh tomatoes on the vine and of olive oil sizzling in the pan with fragrant red peppers. Close your eyes, reveling in your own heartwarming memories with friends and family intertwined with Italian food.

Experts say the sensory aspects of food are central to an understanding of our lives and experiences. In Giancarlo Iannotta’s award-winning film, “My Country,” when the American-born Italian hero and his Italian-born brother sit down to share a first meal with their extended family in Molise, they renew important connections with their roots in a heartwarming scene that brings smiles and laughter to all. When dining in Italy, we experience the bonding effects of meals taken late, enjoyed at a leisurely pace, promoting conversation and laughter. There is deep truth in the old Italian saying, “Benvenuti: Entri come Amici, Vada come Famiglia,” “Welcome: enter as friends, go as family.”

As we eat Italian meals in conviviality, sharing old memories, creating new ones, let’s savor every bite, making the effort to treasure each moment. Allowing Italian food–its sensory elements and its bonding–to make an impact on our lives can enlarge our horizons. Italy is a beautiful country and people are warm and generous, a wonderful place that can be enjoyed in spirit through sharing meals of Italian food with friends and family. So, as you enjoy your next meal, whether it is Pasta Carbonara or Strozzapreti, or Uova al tartufo, revel in the moment and enjoy the creation of precious memories.

Information on ILF’s wonderful corporate partner, and how they have been able to provide the highest quality of food for over 200 years, comes from the Fratelli Beretta website.

“La Qualita e una Tradizione di famiglia” The statement “Quality is a Family Tradition” is the driving force that guides the company and continues to be the main focus of a 200 year tradition.

Fratelli Beretta, first opened its door as a small local meat processing business in 1812 serving the region since the time when Napoleone Bonaparte reigned in Europe. In the early 1900’s, Fratelli Beretta expanded to a manufacturing enterprise with a stable business structure that has thrived through two World Wars and The Great Depression.

Fratelli Beretta remains the longest existing family-owned business in Italian charcuterie tradition, focused on providing quality products, deeply entrenched in tradition while emerging as a leader in innovation.

Today, Fratelli Beretta is a producer of Prosciutto di Parma®, Prosciutto di San Daniele®, Mortadella, Salami, Proscuitto Cotto and other Italian Specialties with a dedication to producing products of the finest quality and the most distinctive flavor.

Written by: Amy Riolo, award-winning author, chef, television personality, cuisine and culture expert, educator, and Mediterranean diet advocate

Skip the long lines and traffic this holiday season and give your loved ones what they’ll appreciate most – a homemade, edible gift from the heart. The following recipes offer something for every palate, budget, and dietary restriction. Enjoy!

For the Gourmand: 
Decadent Chocolate and Dulce de Leche Brownies

Dulce de Leche, the rich – milk caramel from Argentina pairs perfectly with the double chocolate flavor in this rich recipe.

Makes 1 (9×13-pan)

Ingredients
1 ½ cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2  teaspoon salt
9 tablespoons butter
1 ½ cup sugar
18 ounces semi-sweet chocolate chips, divided
1 tablespoon vanilla
3 eggs
9 tablespoons Dulce de Leche

Preparation
Preheat oven to 325F degrees.
In a small bowl, combine flour, baking soda and salt.
Combine butter, sugar and 3 tablespoons water in a small saucepan over high heat, stir well, and bring to a boil.
Remove from heat and stir in half of chocolate (9 ounces) and vanilla.
Stir in eggs and mix well to combine.
Carefully blend in flour mixture.
Stir in remaining 9 ounces chocolate.
Pour into a greased 9 x13-inch baking pan.
Spread top evenly.
Using a butter knife, swirl the Dulce de Leche into the brownie mixture.
Bake on middle oven rack for 15-20 minutes or until cooked through.

For the Chocoholic/Mediterranean Food Lover:
Double Chocolate Baklava

For Italophiles:
White Chocolate, Cherry, and Pistachio Biscotti, Pizzelle, and Calabrian Sesame Cookies (Diabetes Friendly)

For Traditionalists: 
Chocolate Chip Banana Bread

For Pastry Purists:
Italian Pound Cake (Quattro Quarti)

Excerpt presented & written by: Claire L. Gaudiani, Ph.D,  a former president of Connecticut College. She served as Clinical Professor at The George H. Heyman, Jr. Center for Philanthropy and Fundraising at New York University’s School of Professional Studies. Dr. Gaudiani was director of The Declaration Initiative, and a Senior Research Fellow at Yale Law School, and currently prepares young Catholic students in preparing for the sacrament of Confirmation. Claire also serves on ILF’s Board, see full bio.

The book,  Beyond “The Godfather” is a must read as it gives insights, through essays from various Italian American writers, on Italian American experiences from assimilating to its culture and preservation. The following Excerpt is presented by Claire L. Gaudiani, Ph.D., one of the essay writers. ~ ILF

Excerpt: “Years later I realize that my own drives in life are to increase social justice and tolerance, to strive for highest achievement myself, and to celebrate life. I get to do that as a mother, wife, and daughter and as a professor, college president, writer, corporate director, community volunteer, and Eucharistic minister. Those early experiences of trying to satisfy personal drives-say for spoonfuls of Parmesan cheese-with responsibility for the well-being of others probably helped me sort through the conflicts between wanting a career and concern for my family life.

I still feel power in prayer and find help from my heavenly coaches. I still pray for specific personal virtues and work for justice in civil society. I see that power comes from striving and expertise built through competition and cooperation, that it comes from achievements at home and at the office, from serving others and from leading them, from prayer and from work and from having access to friends in high places-worldly and spiritual.

I see that I had a whole set of role models. Our role models do not need to have the same profession or education we aspire to. They need to have the same human impact as we seek to have. My family and patron saints were powerful role models for me, though none of the women ever finished college or received a salary.

Now, more than a hundred years after Augusto Rossano arrived in the United States, more than eighty years after his marriage to Rosa Cosenza, and more than fifty years after their daughter Vera married Augusto’s best friend, Dr. Gaudiani’s only son, Vincent, our children speak Italian, cook, and pray and celebrate in their Italian culture. All the while they achieve at the highest levels by American standards in some of this country’s most prestigious schools, Andover and Princeton. They study art and science. One does architecture; the other, history of science. They are committed to the needy and to excellence, passionate about family, food, children, and their work. The synergy between our Italian family values and our American civic values continues. Their great-grandparents would be proud, I think. My husband and I are grateful.”