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Our Italian Christmas Eve dinner, otherwise known as The Feast of the Seven Fishes, is a wonderful way to celebrate with loved ones, no matter what your heritage.
Table of Contents
- Our Italian Christmas Eve Menu
- Appetizers / Antipasti
- Steamed Mussels Italian Style
- Clams Casino
- Snail (Scungilli) Salad
- Seared Scallops with Roasted Tomatoes
- First Course / Primi
- Calamari Pasta with Homemade Marinara
- Main Course / Secondi
- Baked Cod with Buttered Crumb Topping
- Baked Stuffed Shrimp
- Dessert Course / Dolci
- Italian Ricotta Cookies
- Orange Rosemary Biscotti
- A Brief History of The Feast of the Seven Fishes
Our Italian Christmas Eve Menu
We have a number of Italian-inspired fish and seafood recipes, but the recipes below are by far our favorite combination of dishes for a Christmas Eve feast. The fish and seafood we’ve chosen for our family celebration include mussels, clams, shrimp, squid, scallops, cod, and scungilli (whelk). The recipes are divided by course, so scroll on for details.
If you’re entertaining a smaller crowd, try our Linguine with Seafood (Linguine ai Frutti di Mare). It includes shrimp, scallops, squid, fish, mussels, and clams – six of your seven fishes. Add in one more dish (perhaps the Scungilli Salad), and you have your entire Feast!
Appetizers / Antipasti
To start the meal, we like to serve an assortment of light dishes so that our guests can leave some room for the pasta course and main dishes to come. Our Steamed Mussels Italian-Style, Clams Casino, a garlicky Scungilli Salad, and Seared Sea Scallops with Roasted Tomatoes fit that plan flawlessly.
Steamed Mussels Italian Style
#1 – FRESH MUSSELS
Served with toasted slices of crusty bread to mop up all the delicious juices, these Italian-style steamed mussels make a delicious, light starter course that won’t spoil appetites for the feast to come.
YIELD: 6 servings TOTAL TIME: 35 minutes
KEY INGREDIENTS: Fresh mussels, onion, garlic, plum tomatoes, white wine, breadcrumbs, parsley.
Clams Casino
#2 – LITTLENECK CLAMS
Tender, sweet, littleneck clams topped with a combination of bacon, shallot, red bell pepper, and white wine make a light, flavorful appetizer for an Italian-style dinner menu.
YIELD: 6 servings TOTAL TIME: 35 minutes
KEY INGREDIENTS: Littleneck clams, bacon, shallots, red bell pepper, white wine, parsley.
Snail (Scungilli) Salad
#3 – SCUNGILLI (WHELK / SNAILS)
With a texture similar to calamari, Snail Salad (also known as Scungilli Salad) is a delicious appetizer to serve with a full-course Italian meal.
YIELD: 4 servings TOTAL TIME: 50 minutes
KEY INGREDIENTS: Scungilli (cooked and sliced), celery, onion, garlic, lemon juice, parsley.
Seared Scallops with Roasted Tomatoes
#4 – SEA SCALLOPS
Seared sea scallops, roasted tomatoes and a savory sauce of sautéed shallots, wine & lemon make a light, savory addition to this festive dinner celebration.
YIELD: 6 servings TOTAL TIME: 35 minutes
KEY INGREDIENTS: Sea scallops, grape tomatoes, shallots, butter, olive oil, white wine, lemon juice, parsley.
First Course / Primi
The first course in an Italian meal is usually a pasta course. For this meal, we’ve chosen one with a light red sauce, Squid in Marinara Sauce over linguine.
Calamari Pasta with Homemade Marinara
#5 – CALAMARI (SQUID)
Squid only takes a few minutes to cook in the marinara, so if you prep it advance, and make the sauce ahead too, you can finish up as your pasta cooks. Easy!
YIELD: 4 servings TOTAL TIME: 45 minutes
KEY INGREDIENTS: Squid (calamari), linguine, garlic, canned tomatoes, oregano, parsley.
Main Course / Secondi
Our second, or entrée course consists of two dishes filled with Italian-inspired flavors, Baked Stuffed Shrimp and Baked Cod with Buttered Crumb Topping.
Baked Cod with Buttered Crumb Topping
#6 – ATLANTIC COD
This baked cod recipe can be assembled in advance and baked later making pulling off a Feast of the Seven Fishes menu a little bit easier on the cook.
YIELD: 4 servings TOTAL TIME: 30 minutes
KEY INGREDIENTS: Cod fillets, fresh breadcrumbs, butter, garlic, parsley, lemon.
Baked Stuffed Shrimp
#7 – COLOSSAL SHRIMP
Baked stuffed shrimp is a time-tested New England restaurant dish that’s easy to make at home and an elegant choice for this Christmas Eve menu.
YIELD: 4 servings TOTAL TIME: 40 minutes
KEY INGREDIENTS: Colossal shrimp, butter, garlic, fresh breadcrumbs, Parmesan cheese, parsley.
Dessert Course / Dolci
To finish the meal, we like to serve a small assortment of cookies that includes soft Ricotta Cookies and Orange Rosemary Biscotti, along with cups of espresso.
Italian Ricotta Cookies
Top off your Italian menu with these cake-like, lemony ricotta cookies. They’re a cinch to make and sure to be a family favorite for the holidays.
YIELD: 36 cookies TOTAL TIME: 1 hr
KEY INGREDIENTS: Ricotta cheese, egg, lemon extract, lemon zest, limoncello liqueur, confectioners’ sugar.
Orange Rosemary Biscotti
Flavored with fresh rosemary, orange zest, orange liqueur, and toasted pine nuts, these biscotti are a grown-up treat that goes great with a cup of espresso.
YIELD: 36 biscotti TOTAL TIME: 1 hr 5 min
KEY INGREDIENTS: Flour, butter, sugar, eggs, orange zest, pine nuts, fresh rosemary.
A Brief History of The Feast of the Seven Fishes
Although gathering friends and family together for a meatless meal on Christmas Eve is common throughout Italy, The Feast of the Seven Fishes is actually an Italian-American tradition. Why the feast includes exactly seven types of seafood remains a bit of a mystery as some say it honors the seven holy sacraments of the Catholic Church, while others say it marks the seven days of creation.
The idea of a multi-course seafood dinner on Christmas Eve (La Vigilia) began in Southern Italy, an area surrounded by the sea and known for its bountiful fresh fish and seafood. Immigrants from this area brought the tradition to America, and hence, the Feast of the Seven Fishes began its rise in popularity.
Even if you’re not of Italian heritage (and we are not), an Italian Christmas Eve dinner is a deliciously unique way to celebrate with loved ones during the holiday season. Buon Natale!
Hi Lynne,
Your recipes are amazing. I have a quick question regarding the Scungilli Salad. If I use canned Scungilli (La Monica) I do not have to cook it, correct?
Happy and healthy holidays to you and your family.
Thanks,
Gina
Hi Gina,
Thank you so much for the kind words. To answer your question, I’ve used LaMonica’s canned scungilli a number of times and have always found it to be a quality product. The scungilli is fully cooked, nice and tender, and easy to work with. Just drain it well and proceed with the recipe. Happy Holidays to you as well.