1.
Taste and Tales of Sicilian
Cookery
By Thomas G. Ciapi
Certified Executive Chef
A Back to Queens Cookbook, and Nutritional Presentation
of Sicilian Cookery

2.
Taste and Tales of Sicilian Cookery
What we learn from experiences,
are our greatest gift! We continue
to develop our thought process
from our heritage, culture and
the environment we grew up
with.

3.
Taste and Tales of Sicilian Cookery
Objectives for today’s Seminar:
•Awareness of what we feed to our Seniors and
also for young Children
•The Quality of Food Consumption, and our habits
•“Nutrition for thought”, and cost techniques
My mission today to all the people in this room is
for me to preach good nutritional health. Our
parents have passed down health problems to us
through genetics, and it is up to all of us to focus
on each other to live longer. I cannot emphasize
what I had to do to change the habits of
nutritional eating for my hardening of arteries,
and celiac Disease.

4.
Taste and Tales of Sicilian Cookery
As I started writing my first book “An American Chef’s Dream”, I wanted
to fulfill my personal dream to complete a basic cookbook from my
Heritage.
My Grandfather was my influence who inspired me at an early age. The
Sicilian American Culture became a part of me while growing up in
Queens, and then Long Island.
I have lived in Texas for over thirty years now, and the upbringing from
my childhood still remains with me to this day. I always admired my
Grandfather and Mom’s way of continuously surrounding the family
during the holiday’s at the dinner table. When I was growing up, it was
called “Supper”.
Today, I take my heritage seriously as do so many other people and the
influence continues throughout my Culinary Profession as a Chef. I have
incorporated the simplicity of my Queens Days of cooking with Grandpa
and put it all into a simple Sicilian cookbook.
We lived simple and produced good food that was simple, but with
finesse. A passion that still continues today with my generation and I
hope will pass on to my daughter’s generation to come.

5.
Thomas G. Ciapi, age two, Queens,
New York
Circa 1962,
Sutter Avenue

6.
Thomas and brother Steve Ciapi, Long
Island
Circa 1969,
Lexington
Avenue and the
year the Mets
won the World
Series!

7.
Taste and Tales of Sicilian Cookery
Factors for executing good food!
•Cost to make the food
•Taste and Texture
•Time
•Plate Presentation
•Nutritional Analysis

8.
Sicilian Bread Crusted Soft Shell Crabs
Sautéed in Olive Oil
Served with
Buffalo
Mozzarella
Salad and Herb
Vinaigrette

9.
Taste and Tales of Sicilian Cookery
I ask you all today and think of
the actual food process we are
using in our environment daily,
and say to one another, “Are we
feeding our Seniors or our
Children good wholesome food”?
Discuss the process of wholesome
food and obesity.

10.
Rustic Tuscan Style Penne Pasta with
Grilled Breast of Chicken
Tossed Whole
Wheat Penne
Pasta , Served
with Artichoke,
Fresh Basil,
Grilled Chicken
Breast, Lemon
Zest, Toasted
Pignolia Nuts,
and Lemon
Basil Buerre
Blanc

11.
Classic Grilled Chicken Caesar Salad
Classic Caesar
with Marinated
Breast of
Chicken, Italian
Style Croutons,
Shredded
Parmigiano-
Reggiano,
tossed with
Caesar
Dressing

12.
Taste and Tales of Sicilian Cookery
Each one has a mission to
fulfill, a mission of love.
At the hour of death when we
come face to face
with God, we are going to be
judged on love,
not how much we have done,
but how much love we have put
in the doing.
~ Mother Teresa of Calcutta

13.
Taste and Tales of Sicilian Cookery
As the earth can produce
nothing
without the energizing
power of the sun,
so we can do nothing
without
the energizing power of the
Spirit~
Author Unknown

14.
Taste and Tales of Sicilian Cookery
God has given us
two hands- one
to receive with
and the other to
give with. We are
not made
cisterns for
hoarding; We are
channels made
for sharing~ Billy
Graham

15.
Chicory Salad with Balsamic Vinaigrette and Kalamata Olives
Serves 12
Ingredients:
Two Heads small Chicory or One Large
One Cup Balsamic Vinaigrette (Page?)
Four Ounces Kalamata Olives, Sliced, Lengthwise
Four Ounces Roasted Pignolia Nuts
One Teaspoon Granulated Garlic
One Teaspoon Olive Oil
One Ounce “Shaved “Asiago Cheese
Two Tablespoons Chopped Italian Parsley
Instructions:
•In Ice water or Cold water, wash Chicory, cut core away, and break
with Hands. Leaves will not oxidize.
•On small Sheet pan, add Granulated Garlic, Olive Oil, and Pignolia
Nuts, shuffle around, and bake Seasoned Pignolia Nuts in 350 degree
oven for eight to ten minutes. Set aside.
•In large mixing bowl, add Chicory, Kalamata Olives, and Seasoned
Pignolia Nuts. Toss Salad.
•Add Cheese, Balsamic Vinaigrette, and Chopped Italian Parsley.
•Toss and Place in Wooden Bowl with Salad Tongs.
Notes: Chicory or Curly Endive is bitter in Taste, but as you get
closer to the inside leaves the bitterness subsides. You have to enjoy
this Salad green. Escarole may also be substituted and is in the
Chicory family. Chicory tends to grow large, but the Little ones are
Tasty.

16.
Growing up Italian, you would never find the
simple Salad Greens that a typical child of
today would know. We had Chicory, Escarole,
Radicchio, and a Little Romaine in the Local
Produce Markets.
Iceberg Lettuce in the early days was
considered the outdoor lettuce for Cookouts.
We always used to have this Curly Endive
Salad as a Regular if Mom made Filets for the
evening, and my Dad would always complain
“Rosie, You overcooked the Filets!” “What’s
the matter with you?” In essence, that’s how I
remember this Salad. I could still hear Dad
saying that every time my Mom Made Filets.
Salad was not a major hit in the Family, but
always a required “to Make” Item to fill the
table with other items before the big meal.
This is a simple Salad and I personally like the
bitter Greens even today as a Chef.
Chicory was cheap in the early days, so I guess
that was what we went with on a regular basis,
but do not see much of it in the South. It can
be slightly sautéed with Garlic, and Red Bean
as a nice side Dish also.

17.
Eggplant Caponata
Serves 12
Ingredients:
Two Large Eggplant
One Tablespoon of Chopped Garlic
One Tablespoon of Chopped Shallots
One Large Yellow Onion, Sliced
One Large Roasted Red Pepper, Sliced
One Tablespoon of Chopped Parsley
Sea Salt to Taste
One Cup of White Wine “Cooking” or “House”
One Cup of Olive Oil
Instructions:
•Trim skin off of eggplant and slice long ways. Cut into ½ inch Julienne
strips.
•Sprinkle Salt on Eggplant to sweat, reserve.
•Chop Garlic, Shallots, and Parsley.
•Roast off Red Pepper, sweat in plastic bag, and take off skin. Canned
Roasted Red pepper will do also. Slice Pepper, reserve.
•Julienne Slice Yellow Onion After chopping other ingredients.
•In large Sauté pan, add Olive Oil and Heat. Add Eggplant to pan and Sauté
with Garlic, Sliced Onion, Shallots. Cook for ten minutes.
•Add White Wine and Reduce.
•Add Roasted Red Pepper and Chopped Parsley.
•Heat additional ten minutes and reduce.
•Date, Label, and refrigerate.
•Serve with Sliced Crostini Italian Bread.

18.
When I was a boy, we would go to the local
delicatessen for all our favorite Italian items for the
weekends and or Holidays. I remember especially
gazing in the window and seeing all the Sausages
hanging and the special Sharp Provolone Cheese. The
butcher would make his own Italian Sausage and of
course they would have all the imported Italian
Delicacies.
One of the items that would always catch my eye was
the Eggplant Caponata that was bottled and jarred
from the old country. There were other items that
were jarred and used for Antipasti.
Today I revised the addition to my repertoire of
Cooking and produce my own homemade Eggplant
Caponata. You can serve this cold or warm depending
on the time of the year. I also like to serve it with
Seasoned Italian Bread slices and lightly toasted in
the oven. This makes a great side dish and also is
good for Potlucks.

19.
Taste and Tales of Sicilian Cookery
Tastes and Tales
Tastes and Tales is primarily about our thoughts and memories,
what we experienced growing up and our heritage. It reminds us of
who and what we are and tries to turn the thought process to earlier
days. We live in the now, but it is always memories that make us
laugh, cry, feel, touch, and remember how life is and was, both good,
and bad.
Memories are what help us to fulfill our dreams, desires, and goals.
We pursue a longing for our culture, history, and generational
heritage daily in our lives.
My Tastes and Tales are memories from yesteryear of self, family,
friends, food, and gatherings. As a Chef, I’ve grown accustomed to
remember what I had, and what I continue to give to others. It’s all
about the food and hospitality.
Italians are known for the respect they give each other, their love of
family and the desire to make others happy.
We continually want to reach out and show our love and passion in
our cooking. This is what I have done for thirty years as a Chef,
and to maintain that focus with people throughout my travels today.

20.
Taste and Tales of Sicilian Cookery
Once Italian,
always Italian!
My Momma,
1973,
Grandparents
50th Wedding
Anniversary
Party!

21.
Taste and Tales of Sicilian Cookery
My
Grandparent’s
50th Wedding
Anniversary,
our home,
1973.

22.
238 Lexington Avenue, West
Hempstead, New York
Circa 1964,
Home was
renovated and
Landscaped
before moving
into 1965.
Good
Memories,
Good Times,
produce
positive
influences!

23.
Taste and Tales of Sicilian Cooking
Sicilian
Cookery Class
for U.T.
Informal
Classes, circa,
1993

24.
My cup truly runneth over.
Food service is and will always be an uphill battle between
roots
and family balance, but great passion comes to those who
have a
desire to do the things in life in the old, natural way.
I’ve enjoyed the outcome of this new cook book because it
involved
my heart, my love for my Grandpa Nonno and a dogged
determination to follow what was natural, coupled with a
young
memory of old friends telling me to go for it.
The outreach and encouragement from new family
communication
that had been nonexistent, and for the perseverance of
God’s
inner calling to bring us all together, that is what I tried to
do in this
book. The gathering of family is long gone on both sides,
but the
memories will live on forever.