Most people think “turkey” and “ham” at Christmas but Italians know how to do fish for Christmas and do it right. La Vigilla Napoletana is the traditional seven fish Italian Christmas Eve dinner.
Why fish for “La Vigilla”? Although less so now, Christmas Eve was traditionally a day of abstinence in the Catholic Church and not meat is eaten so fish is the logical alternative. Think Fridays in Lent.
The seven fish menu varies from family to family but eel and baccala (salt cod) are usually always on the menu.
If you’ve got time on your hands and seven fish dinner sounds great for Christmas Eve, check out a few delicious La Vigilla Napoletana recipes posted by Phyllis Stein-Novack. My favorite recipe from the list was the for Mussels with Fennel and White Wine:
Ingredients:
- 4 tablespoons of olive oil
- 4 fat cloves of garlic, sliced
- 1 large fennel bulb, thinly sliced
- 1 cup of dry white wine
- 2 pounds of mussels, preferably Prince Edward Island
Directions:
- Heat the oil in a five-quart stockpot over medium-high. Add the garlic and fennel and sauté for about five to eight minutes. Be careful not to burn the garlic. Add the wine and blend well. Add the mussels. Raise the heat to high to bring to a boil. Lower to a simmer, then cover and cook until the mussels open, about 10 minutes. Shake the pot once or twice to evenly distribute the mussels in the pan.
Serves six.
Sounds like it sure beats Chinese food on Christmas Eve.
What’s your favorite fish for the holidays?
Tags: Chirstmas recipes, italian food, Recipes
Christmas Eve Dinner - Don’t Worry About It | Mommy Treats wrote,
[…] yourself to an easy Italian dinner on Christmas Eve. No, I’m not talking about an elaborate Seven Fish Italian Christmas Eve Dinner, I’m talking about taking the really easy way out - everyone’s favorite… a big […]
Link | December 23rd, 2007 at 8:51 pm