CONTACT:

Skip Lombardi
941.330.8738
skip@skiplombardi.org
http://almostitalian.com

La Cucina dei Poveri
now on Kindle!

Skip Lombardi is pleased to announce that he has just republished his culinary memoir, La Cucina dei Poveri: Recipes from My Sicilian Grandparents, in a digital format. The paperback book, first published in 2004, is currently out-of-print, but you can get it as an ebook in time for tonight’s dinner.

Written in red sauce, here’s a tale of family culture passed on through its cuisine. Pasta, arugula, oranges, and olives tell the author’s story of growing up in the kitchen of his extended Sicilian-American family. La Cucina dei Poveri includes 94 recipes, many from Mr. Lombardi’s maternal grandparents, Sebastian and Carmelina LaBella.

It takes a just a minute to download La Cucina dei Poveri as an ebook from the Kindle Store at Amazon.com. And if you need to read it on your computer, iPhone, or Sony Reader, you can also download it from Smashwords.com. At either site—you’ll be able to sample the contents before you buy the digital version.

“I had been exploring new publishing options for a second edition. I was leaning towards one of the many Print-On-Demand services now available–including Amazon’s own Book Surge,” said Mr. Lombardi. “but when I learned how easy it was to self-publish for Amazon’s Kindle, I thought it’d be a great way to reach a new audience that might have missed the first edition of the book.

“I believe that with the contraction of the traditional publishing industry and the expansion of the electronic book market, there are some wonderful opportunities, not only for self-publishing authors, but also for their readers.

“The geek in me loves the idea that anyone could have my grandmother’s recipe for lasagne on a Blackberry or iPhone while he shops for the ingredients at the supermarket.”

Skip Lombardi has had overlapping careers as a Broadway musician, high school math teacher, syndicated writer, and software engineer. But he is proud to say he has never let any of those pursuits interfere with his passion for cooking and eating Italian food.

Mr. Lombardi is currently immersed in a new book-to-be. Since 2007, Almost Italian, has been a popular blog, an online” book-in progress” about Italian American food and culture. See the archives and latest post at http://almostitalian.com

La Cucina dei Poveri is now available as an ebook from the Amazon.com Kindle Store and from Smashwords.com

For additional information, photos, and digital review copies of La Cucina dei Poveri, please contact skip@skiplombardi.org

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Cafe Baci, Sarasota, FL.

Tonight, many of you will be celebrating La Cena della Vigilia di Natale—the Feast of the Seven Fishes. And even if not, we hope you’ll all be together with loved ones.

My family didn’t observe the tradition, probably because they were rare birds in our community of Sicilian-Americans—Methodists. When it came to religious observance, minimalism was the guiding principle. This is not to say we didn’t feast, and I hasten to add that my grandparents never lost sleep over the separation of Church and Kitchen. As a child, I could look forward to Christmas Eve treats like Schiacciatta, Baccalà, and Casatta alla Siciliana. But we were under no obligation to abstain from meat, or to attend mass of any kind, let alone at midnight.

So research on the folkloric, and possibly non-Christian, origins of the Feast has been fascinating for a non-Catholic like me. What’s remarkable is how little anyone actually knows about it. One thing is clear: the number seven has held mystical significance for millennia—even before the birth of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.

Some say the fish represent the seven sacraments of the Catholic Church. Others say it’s the seven Christian virtues, the Seven Deadly Sins, the Seven Sorrows of Mary. Others cite the Seven Hills of Rome (although most would concur that few modern Romans observe la vigilia). I’ve even seen reference to the Seven Sleepers of Ephesus in Asia Minor…

There are those, like my editor, who detect more than a whiff of Saturnalia, the Pagan celebration of the winter solstice, and note similarities to folkloric traditions persistent among Muslims. (Remember that under Arab rule, Sicily’s cuisine gained ingredients and techniques that make even its contemporary food more reminiscent of North African Muslim kitchens than those of Calabria.)

Other numerals—9, 11, 13—carry additional meanings for Christians and those of other faiths. Indeed, depending on the individual family and the means and skills of its cooks, the vigilia table often includes seafood and fish dishes in those numbers, too.

Given the abbondanza Italians were able to enjoy here in America, it’s no surprise that they would demonstrate their gratitude and generosity and continue, through the decades, to add contemporary dishes to their family menus. Certainly baccalà, calamare, and eel are unshakable mainstays for traditionalists, but clams casino, shrimp cocktail, and sushi have taken their places on Italian-American Christmas Eve tables, too.

Whatever you do to celebrate this wonderful time of year, we wish you Auguri!.

Skip & Holly

P.S. We’d love to hear what’s on your Christmas Eve menu. Please leave a comment if you’d like.