Archive for July, 2012

Wordless Wednesday – Limmony Tomatoes and the Eggplant

Posted July 25, 2012 By Adri

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The Garibaldi Guard – the 39th New York Infantry Regiment

Posted July 21, 2012 By Adri

La Figlia del Reggimento – The Daughter of the Regiment

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All’armi!

They called them Lincoln’s Foreign Legion, men from all over the world who fought on the side of the Union. Of the many foreign born patriot units, none is more well known than the 39th New York Infantry Regiment, the Garibaldi Guard.

On December 20, 1860 South Carolina seceded from the Union. A house divided. The Confederate bombardment of Fort Sumter commenced before daybreak on April 12, 1861. The Civil War was on. Our nation was on a course that would sorely test the Union, pitting brother against brother and expatriot against expatriot. Read more… »

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When the Moon Hits Your Eye or Spaghetti in the Sky

Posted July 16, 2012 By Adri

Spaghetti al sugo di carne

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We choose to go to the Moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard.

President John F. Kennedy, September 12, 1962


Gaetano Crocetti

 

 

 

I often find myself wondering what my grandfather, Gaetano Crocetti, thought as he sailed to America in 1913. As he voyaged across the Atlantic Ocean from Naples to New York he must have looked up from the deck of the Hamburg and gazed at the Moon. I bet he never dreamed he would have two sons, and of those two Italian-Americans, one would help send men to the Moon and the other would become world famous singing about the Moon. Read more… »

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Cantaloupe and Campari Pops

Posted July 10, 2012 By Adri

Ghiaccioli fatti in casa

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It’s summer. It’s hot. Want an ice pop? Or perhaps an aperitivo – maybe some Campari over ice? The truth is you can have both. Try a Cantaloupe & Campari Pop, a remarkably refreshing Aperitivo on a Stick (sorry, I couldn’t help myself on that one.) And all the credit goes to the just released book People’s Pops, published by Ten Speed Press. Read more… »

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Fregola Sarda

Posted July 6, 2012 By Adri

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Fregola sarda (fregola or fregula) is a signature pasta of Sardegna. It is believed to be yet another example of the Moorish influence on Italian cuisine, having come from North Africa. Durum wheat is rolled into tiny balls and toasted, giving the pasta its trademark varicolored golden tint.

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With its nutty taste and pleasing bite fregola is added to soups like Sardegna’s famous Sa fregula con vongole – a clam soup with a saffron broth. Boiled in water, chicken or vegetable stock, it cooks up in about 10 to 12 minutes for a quick side dish, dressed simply with olive oil and Parmigiano or Pecorino sardo. I love to use it in salads. Think of any couscous or bulgur salad you make, and fregola will work beautifully. Read more… »

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Philip Mazzei and the Declaration of Independence

Posted July 3, 2012 By Adri

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Philip Mazzei
b. December 25, 1730 – d. March 19, 1816

 

Tutti gli uomini sono per natura egualmente liberi e indipendenti. Quest’eguaglianza e necessaria per costituire un governo libero. Bisogna che ognuno sia uguale all’altro nel diritto naturale.
-Philip Mazzei – Virginia Gazette, 1774

 

All men are by nature equally free and independent. Such equality is necessary in order to create a free government. All men must be equal to each other in natural law.
-translation by Thomas Jefferson

 

These are the words of Philip (Filipo) Mazzei, Italian emigre, surgeon, businessman, friend and neighbor of Thomas Jefferson. It is so easy for us to think that everyone who lived in the United States prior to the Revolutionary War hailed from England. That is, however not the case. Read more… »

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