Espresso
By Phil Torre
It is a tradition with many Italian families to celebrate Christmas Eve with an elaborate fish banquet. Sometimes referred to as The Feast of the Seven Fishes, not everybody sticks to exactly seven; some go up to 11 or 12, predominantly shellfish. Personally, since I am allergic to shellfish, I have a feast of one fish, Red Snapper Livornesa (actually, since it is Christmas Eve we usually splurge and use Chilean Sea Bass rather than snapper).
Italian Recipes
Featured Recipe: Seafood Risotto
This recipe actually comes from my friend Michael who prides himself on his risotto skills. He feels the error that most people make when cooking risotto is that they go overboard on the stirring and end up with a gummy blob. Risotto is supposed to be creamy with distinct grains of rice not a mushy mass of overcooked, over-stirred starch. What makes risotto break down, as with all starchy foods, is the release of gluten from the rice as it is stirred. Michael prefers to just stir enough to keep it from burning on the bottom. If you like you can add scallops, small clams or any other seafood to the risotto.
