Chef Anthony Finelli

Welcome to Finelli's Italian Villa home on the World Wide Web!  I am Chef Anthony Finelli, the Head Chef at The Italian Villa.  Below you will find one of my favorite recipes that I would like to share with you.  Check back often as I will change these recipes monthly.

ENJOY!

 

 

 

 

In Italian, Christmas Eve is "La Vigilia," the eve.
 

Traditionally the dinner is meatless and fish dishes dominate.
 

Every region, city, and country town in Italy has ritual foods that are served.  Many people prepare Christmas Eve dinners with a required number of courses that range from 7 to 9.  The number seven represents the 7 sacraments and nine for the Trinity multiplied by 3.  Over the years the number of courses served by most Italian families has decreased, but fish still remains the main feature of the meal.
If you are serving several courses, choose a well-balanced selection of dishes using a variety of different fish and shellfish  - an appetizer, a soup, a salad, a fried fish, a baked, grilled, or stewed fish, and a pasta dish.  For a simpler meal, prepare just one course and serve with a crusty Italian bread and a mixed green salad.
    

Stuffed Squid (serves 2)

1 oz. dried porcini mushrooms

1/3 cup chopped onion

2 tsp. olive oil

1 cup cubed Italian bread

1 cup ricotta cheese

1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

1/4 cup Parmesan cheese

3 TB. parsley salt and pepper .

1/2 lb. squid (bodies only)

Traditional tomato sauce

Soak porcini mushrooms in 2 cups hot water for 30 minutes. Rinse and chop coarsely. Sauté onion in olive oil until soft, 2-3 minutes. Combine all of the ingredients, except the squid and tomato sauce, in a bowl. Mix well. Stuff the mixture into the squid. Do not overfill or they will burst during cooking. Close the end of the squid with a toothpick. Pour a little of the tomato sauce in the bottom of a casserole dish. Place the stuffed squid on top. Pour a little more sauce over each. Cover and bake in a 350 degree F. oven for 30 minutes. Remove cover. Sprinkle parmesan cheese over and cook an additional 5-10 minutes.