On a recent cold and gray December Sunday, dozens of Italian families gathered to celebrate a Sicilian Christmas cookie at Casa Italia, the Italian cultural center in west suburban Stone Park. Little ...

I believe there’s room on the table for all the cookies during December. Sure, we have our must-bakes—mine are gingerbread cookies and these nameless, cherry-spiked butter cookies—but you should leave ...

Christmas cookies are a timeless tradition that make the holidays that much sweeter. Discover delicious traditional holiday ...

Think of cuccidati as a more mature Fig Newton. The classic Sicilian cookies make an appearance around Christmastime, filling flaky dough with a fig or mixed-fruit jam. Enjoyed as is or smeared with ...

Spread the nuts on a baking sheet and toast them in the middle of a pre-heated 350 degree oven until they are lightly golden and aromatic, 5 - 10 minutes. Set aside & cool. Plump the raisins in some ...

This cookie is a labor of love. One of my fondest memories is that of my grandmother making these wonderful cookies. She used to do this all by hand, as I did too for many years. Since then, I have ...

For Christmas, many Italian and Sicilian families make fig cookies, or cuccidati. In Spain and many South American countries, people eat one grape for each of the upcoming 12 months to ensure good ...

It was Christmas the first time I ever saw my mother-in-law, Croce, in Los Angeles. She had just arrived on a transcontinental flight from the mountains of her rural home in Sicily. She knew no ...

Spread the nuts on a baking sheet and toast them in the middle of a pre-heated 350 degree oven until they are lightly golden and aromatic, 5 - 10 minutes. Set aside & cool. Plump the raisins in some ...