Yesterday I spent the whole day with family making Cucidati, Italian fig cookies. We stopped counting at 500 but I think it was actually close to 600 in the end. I figure if you’re going to do this only once a year you might as well go big!
Everything was prepped the night before so when everyone arrived we could get right down to the business of making and baking the cookies, we knew it would be an all day project.
My husband has a soft spot for Cucidati, I did a post way back about them. A tender dough filled with figs, dates, raisins, walnuts or almonds, orange peel or marmalade, dark rum or whiskey, some clove, cinnamon and honey he looks forward to them every year, they’re nostalgic and remind him of his mom. So it was fitting that his sister and cousin brought along two special rolling pins, one was his moms and the other, his aunts, they were with us in spirit.
They also brought along some of this fabulous pistachio liqueur to sip as we were baking, it’s become our tradition and it pairs perfectly while you’re taste testing the cookies. ( wink, wink!) Besides fig and pistachio are a perfect match! 
After a few minutes everyone got in their groove doing their specific jobs, we had the music going and we started pumping them out!
Straight from the oven onto my marble dining room table which was a good spot for them to cool down on.
When we got half way through the dough we stopped for a lunch break of lentil soup and a frittata, then back to work!
The table started filling up fast after lunch so it was time to get them frosted so the glaze would be completely dry before they got packed into containers.
A proud moment, waiting for the last two batches in my oven to come out and then every inch on my dining room table would be filled with fig cookies!
The best part, enjoying the fruits of our labor!
This frittata was born from leftover squash that I had in my fridge and it was a big hit, I love it when things come together at the spur of the moment! You could eat this for breakfast, brunch or even dinner with a salad and it’s so quick to put together like all frittatas are.
I’ve been experimenting with my new favorite squash, Delicata. It’s smaller in size and has a very thin skin which is all eatable, the flesh is very creamy in texture and rich in flavor. I love the look of the smaller rings when you cut into it with it’s scalloped edges. You can also slice it length wise, remove the seeds, stuff it and eat the whole thing, it’s very tender.
I used freshly grated romano cheese along with and an aged cheddar to flavor my eggs which complemented the delicata squash perfectly. Spinach and tomatoes were also added.
Make sure not to use too many eggs because you want to be able to see the squash sitting up there real pretty, of course it all depends on how big your pan is, I used a 10″ skillet, five eggs, 5 slices of squash.
The key to making nice looking ribbons is to find a butternut squash that has a long neck, you’re only going to be using the top so the longer the better, the shorter stumpier squash won’t work. I recommend either tagliatelle or pappadelle for the pasta as both hold up well against the butternut squash ribbons which tend to be wide.
I used a medium sized squash, top only, and you’ll would be surprised how many ribbons you’ll get. I used a simple vegetable peeler to make mine, I keep turning my squash as I peel the ribbons off.
Roast them on a baking sheet 375 to 400 degrees but watch them carefully because you don’t want them to burn or dry out. The edges will start to curl but the centers will still be soft and moist, that’s exactly what you want.
Toss them gently into your cooked pasta and sauce then place it all on a nice platter for the wow factor!
It all looks so pretty as the pasta and squash intertwines together but even better yet you’ll love how it tastes!
I’m Marie, a wife, mother, mother-in-law, and gramma of two beautiful girls. My passion is food, clear and simple but especially Italian food, hence the name of my blog, Proud Italian Cook. I want you to feel right at home here so grab a cup of coffee, I’ll get the pastries, take a look around and enjoy your visit! {
