Where's She Now?

Passport & Plate - Stuffed Calamari - A Holiday Tradition

USA | Friday, March 14, 2014 | 5 photos

Ingredients
Preheat oven 350 degrees.
2 lbs small squid cleaned, fresh or frozen, include tubes and tentacles (my preference is fresh squid as it’s more tender)
Stuffing
7-8 slices stale bread
3 T garlic minced
4 T grated Pecorino Romano cheese
1 T fresh parsley chopped
1 T olive oil
1 egg
salt & pepper
toothpicks

Tomato Sauce
1 28oz can Italian Plum Tomatoes
1 medium yellow onion chopped
2 T olive oil
salt & pepper

 

How to prepare this recipe
In medium saucepan heat olive oil. Add onion, cook until soft. Add tomatoes. Salt and pepper to taste. Simmer for 30 minutes.

Pulverize the bread in a food processor and add to medium size mixing bowl. Add garlic, cheese, parsley and olive oil, mix together. Beat egg and add a few dashes of salt and pepper. Add egg to bread crumb mixture, mix well (will be slightly moist). Fill squid a little more than half way and close the open end with a toothpick. Place squid including tentacles in a 13”x9” baking dish and cover with tomato sauce. Bake at 350' for 20-30 minutes or until the tomato sauce is bubbling and the squid is tender. Buono Appetito!

 

The story behind this recipe
My passion for cooking started when I was 8 years old. I was inspired by 3 generations of women of Italian descent preparing and creating delicious recipes. As for my Italian-born, great grandmother, cooking was natural and effortless, rarely did she measure any of the ingredients in her recipes.
As with many cultures, family tradition was very important. For our family that tradition was the Christmas Eve holiday. This was the holiday where the family would commune around the table and feast on seven fishes. Weeks of preparation for the celebration began early in December. The fish would be selected from the 9th Street Italian Market in Philadelphia. The Italian Market was a place to discover fresh produce, fish, cured meats, cheeses and international specialty items. Freshly baked goods filled the air with a sweet aroma that would have your mouth watering for a cannoli or sfogliatelle.
My first lesson was to prepare the stuffed calamari, which turned out to be the most memorable dish of all the fishes. Cleaning the squid was a true experience. One, I had to actually touch the fish and two, the squid had a sack of black ink and ink behind the eyes. Naturally, at such a young age, I squirmed at the idea of ink coming from squid, but quickly turned this oddity into a contest seeing who could collect the most ink sacks. Next, the stuffing was prepared and carefully stuffed into the squid. A tomato based sauce simmered on the stove with few ingredients which included onion and tomatoes, to fully allow for the appreciation of the delicate calamari flavor blended with a slightly sharp garlic and cheese stuffing. The final step was to bake the squid until tender and the tomato sauce was gently bubbling with a delightful aroma.
As we continue to celebrate and feast on seven fishes, the traditional menu has changed over the years, but the stuffed calamari remains unchanged. The calamari has always been a favorite and continues to be the most requested fish of our feast.