Rita Watson: At Easter, Grandma always held the culinary throne
Published on 06 April 2014
Grandma’s kitchen was a sacred place where she tightly held her culinary secrets. Essentially she was “a little of this and a pinch of that” type of cook. While she often let us roll out the dough for her homemade pasta, only as Easter approached did she bring us into her flour-filled world. It was also the only season of the year in which Gram encouraged relatives to share a piece of their “pizzagaina,” the Neapolitan pizza rustica.
Although Gram was convinced that no one could compete with the texture, moisture, and meats in her treasured recipe (one that’s impossible to reprint since she measured by handfuls), she was always on the look-out to be certain that she remained unrivaled. On the Saturday before Easter her in-laws and cousins came by for the women’s brunch and exchange of their hearty pies. As they arrived, she would whisper to us, “No matter what the others taste like, be sure you say something nice.”
In one of our handwritten family recipes from her, you can see why Gram believed in the power of food. For this dish, she diced meats that included baked ham, prosciutto, capicola and pepperoni to go along with the requisite Italian cheeses.
After mixing the ingredients together and placing them in a large baking dish, she blessed herself before cutting a large Easter cross into the crust.
When the church bells rang out at noon on Saturday, Gram placed her prize on the dining room sideboard and waited for the family. As each one arrived with their dish, she placed them on either side her own masterpiece.
For Gram, the best part of the brunch came after the last relative had said, “good-bye.” Her twinkling blue eyes would light up. It was time for her pizzagaina critique. We can still picture her taste testing.
“Zia Agatha always uses too much mozzarella. I could tell this was hers with my eyes closed. Concetta’s is still too watery. This one is Aunt Gal’s. I don’t even have to taste. Just look how she skimps on the meat. And Antoinette, can you imagine she used boiled ham instead of baked ham? And look at this one. Millie claims she made it herself, but this is her husband’s. He always makes the crust too thick.”
As she went down the line tasting each version, Gram became ever more convinced that she still reigned as “Pizzagaina Queen.” Once satisfied, she would percolate a pot of demitasse. Then we would sit at the window seat watching for Grandpa to reclaim his home.
“We have a lot to be grateful for,” Gram smiled. “It’s a lot of work, all this cooking. But this is what keeps family together.”
Rita Esposito Watson, an All About You columnist, adapted this from her upcoming “Italian kisses: Gram’s wisdom.”