Ethnic backgrounds have a huge influence on what people eat and the way they eat it. As a fourth generation Italian-American, my ethnic background has greatly influenced my view of food. While daily food choices still show a small persuasion of the Italian culture, it is the holiday season when the true influence is evident. While food is important aspect of any culture, I feel that this is truer of the Italian ethnicity, as it is commonly stereotyped.
My great grandparents emigrated from different regions of Italy, primarily Sicily and Naples. Their families found each other in and around East Haven, Connecticut, the fourth most Italian-American community in the United States. As did scores of immigrants, they upheld many of their cultural behaviors while adopting the norms of American society. Food was an integral part of the transition. While food was a great way to connect with people of your own culture and of other cultures as well, the cost of living for many people of the time prevented them from enjoying all of the luxuries that we are now able to afford. “As immigrants from different regions of Italy settled in different regions of the United States and became ‘Italian-Americans,’ they brought with them diverse traditions of foods and recipes that were particularly identified with their regional origins in Italy and yet infused with the characteristics of their new home locale in America.”
While my Italian heritage is somewhat evident in my daily food choices, special occasions are a time to truly celebrate in a traditional way and food is an integral part of these traditional celebrations. Because Catholicism is the primary religion of Italy, most Italian immigrants became more devoutly Catholic when they moved to the United States. This is evident in older generations in my family. As a result, the Christmas season is marked by family gatherings that commemorate of the birth of Jesus. Food is an extremely important part of such celebrations. Christmas Eve is celebrated at my grandparents’ house with a festa dei sette pesci, or feast of seven fishes, sometimes referred to as la vigilia, or the vigil, referring to the wait for the midnight birth of Jesus. Our meal typically begins with cocktail shrimp and a scungulli (a type of large sea snail) salad. We move on to a fried seafood platter consisting of fried shrimp, scallops, and calamari. After a short break from eating, we proceed to devouring king crab legs, baked lobster tails, and fresh stuffed quahog clams, if we still have any room left for them. “The tradition of eating seafood on Christmas Eve dates from the medieval Roman Catholic tradition of abstinence—in this case, refraining from the consumption of meat or milk products—on Fridays and specific holy days. As no meat or butter could be used, observant Catholics would instead eat fish, typically fried in oil.” While this is the largest part of our Christmas celebration, we do still gather with family on Christmas day for a much more modest celebration. Christmas is practically the only holiday that still carries a true Italian tradition. The celebration of Easter and New Year’s Day are similar and are much less traditional. They normally consist of a meal of a roast of lamb or beef or a baked ham. Our Thanksgiving feast is typical of that of most Americans and consists of a turkey with all the trimmings. Independence Day, also, is marked by a traditional American cookout of hamburgers, hotdogs, and salads, and is shared surrounded by our entire family and many close family friends. Since food is such a great way to bring everyone together, the holidays seem to have become centered on it in my family.
Daily meals are much different than the traditional cuisine of the different holidays. While I am at home, I usually fend for myself for breakfast. This usually consists of a bowl of cereal, or two eggs and a glass of orange juice. I usually bring a chicken salad or a sandwich and a serving of fruit to work for lunch. For dinner, my mom makes a variety of dishes. Many of them are Italian influenced, such as various pastas, chicken, and fish. A nice, grilled rib-eye steak are a nice treat during the summer months. I also enjoy eating many of the various game meats my dad brings home from his numerous hunting and fishing trips. Venison and moose meats are some of my favorites and have a familiar, yet unique taste and texture. For side dishes, I enjoy various types of rice and other starches. In terms of vegetables, though, I am rather selective. My favorite vegetables include spinach, broccoli, mushrooms, carrots, and asparagus, and I enjoy them when they are prepared in a specific, familiar manner. I refuse to eat string beans, cabbage, squash, or zucchini, perhaps not because of their flavors, yet simply because I dislike their odor, appearance, or texture. Weekends, however are usually different. Breakfast is a treat when my dad decides to whip up some pancakes, French toast, or an omelet. Usually, one time during the weekend, we will gather with my family for dinner. Often times, my parents and I will go to my grandparents’ house for an Italian meal with my grandparents, aunt, uncle, and cousins. My grandmother loves cooking big meals for the whole family and will generally cook either lasagna, manicotti or some other pasta dish with her homemade sauce or one of her chicken or seafood specialties. Meals like these become about more than just the food. The opportunity for everyone to get together and spend the day with one another is so much more valuable than the food.
Dining at UConn is much different, and less predictable than at home. Breakfast often consists of a small plate of scrambled eggs and hardboiled egg whites and a bowl of cereal. Sometimes, I instead opt for an omelet and Belgian waffle from the Towers Dining Hall Fusion Bar. Lunch varies quite a bit depending on the options of the day. Depending on the locations of my classes for the day, I will choose to stop into one of the eight different dining halls around campus to eat. I enjoy the various soup and salad offerings at these dining halls and supplement one of the diverse meal choices. At the South Dining Hall, I opt to visit the international counter, which offers many alternative meal choices from around the world. For dinner, I typically eat in Towers and enjoy the daily specialties at Fusion. Quesadilla, omelet, pasta, or salad topper bars are a very popular alternative to the repetitious selections that they offer. More importantly than the daily meal choices, I usually opt to eat where it is convenient based on my schedule. While not always the healthiest choice, the Student Union Street Market is a great place to get a delicious substitute for mundane dining hall food. Ordering in is always an option as well. When feeling lazy or sick of UConn dining options, my friends and I sometimes decide to order food from one of the many restaurants around campus. It maybe a half pound of golden barbeque chicken wings from Wings Over Storrs, or a chicken ranch wrap from Sergeant Pepperoni’s, or a calzone from DP Dough that we choose, but we try to limit ourselves to ordering only once every few weeks. Dining at school is much less predictable than at home. With so many different choices each day, there is always something different to try.
While my food choices are quite varied, I find that my nutrient intake is rather unbalanced. An analysis of my diet generally shows a higher than recommended intake of carbohydrates, fats, and sodium, a sufficient intake of vitamins and a low intake of fiber and calcium. This nutrient imbalance shows that I do not always make the best of choices when it comes to food. I find it more difficult to make good choices at school because of the lack of availability of all healthy food choices. At home, my choices are influenced by my culture, and the traditional foods of such are often unhealthy alone and much be supplemented with healthy alternatives.

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[ 2 ]. "Italian-American cuisine." Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 26 Jan 2009 27 Feb 2009 .
[ 3 ]. "Feast of the seven fishes." Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 25 Feb 2009. 27 Feb 2009 .