St. Joseph’s Day: Traditional Soup & Pastry

Today marks the celebration of Saint Joseph, one of the most beloved saints among Catholics. According to legend, there was famine in Sicily and the villagers prayed to Saint Joseph for help. Their prayers were answered and the end of the famine was celebrated with a special feast in his honor. This celebration became tradition, and each year thereafter, the wealthier families would prepare a huge buffet (also known as the St. Joseph’s Table) for those less fortunate to enjoy. Although not widely recognized in the United States, it has greater significance in Italy, Spain and Portugal, as it’s also Father’s Day.

If you are Italian-American, Catholic or have a ‘Joseph’ in your life, this holiday may also be tradition in your home. In our family, my husband and youngest son are named Joseph, so we refer to this simply as their “name day.” It is commonly celebrated with a thick soup, or minestra, made with three types of beans and three types of macaroni. After dinner, save room for the traditional St. Joseph’s Day sfinge, or pastry, which is a cream puff filled with a sweet ricotta and topped with cherries.  

(Note about soup: if you do not have time to soak the split peas, you can use any combination of beans, that are readily available in cans. Just rinse under cold water and drain. Cannellini beans work very well in this dish, also. Lentils, although of the dry variety, do not require soaking and take less than an hour to cook.)

(Note about pastry: these are easy to find at most bakeries, so if you don’t have time to slave over the oven, pick some up at your favorite local bake shoppe!)

Simple Saint Joesph’s Macaroni

(Recipe courtesy of The Secret Ingredient)

Ingredients:

For the Pastry:

• 1 cup water
• 2 sticks unsalted butter
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 1 Tbls. sugar
• 1 c. all purpose flour
• 4 eggs
• Zest of one lemon and one orange

For the custard:

• 1 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup flour
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 3 cups whole milk
• 4 egg yolks
• 3 Tbls. unsalted butter
• 1 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1 Tbls. rum (optional)

How to:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

In a large saucepan, combine the water and butter, and bring to a boil. Add the salt and flour, whisking constantly until the mixture leaves the sides of the pan to form a ball in the center. Remove from heat and allow to cool.

Add the eggs, one at a time, beating them in completely. Add the sugar, lemon zest, and orange zest. Mix well.

Drop by large tablespoon (or use a large pastry bag to pipe large mounds) onto a baking sheet, placing the puffs three inches apart.

Bake for ten minutes, then reduce the heat to 350 degrees and bake for thirty minutes or until golden.

Remove the puffs from the oven.

Open the puffs immediately at the top to allow steam to escape.

Cool completely before filling and make the custard.

In saucepan over moderate heat, combine sugar, flour and salt.

Add milk gradually, cooking and stirring until mixture is thick and bubbly. Lower heat, stirring for 2 minutes and remove from heat.

In small bowl, add cream mixture to eggs slowly. Return mixture back to pan. Bring to gently boil for 2 more minutes, adding butter, rum, and vanilla. Tranfer to a shallow bowl to cool, placing plastic wrap on the top of the custard to prevent a skin forming. Refrigerate.

Once custard has cooled completely, pipe into opened pastry shells until they are so full they might pop, top with a cherry, and dust with powdered sugar.