Preparing a Five Course Italian Meal

Adult Enrichment -

Adult Winter 2025

If there’s one thing Italians know well, it’s that no social gathering of family and friends is complete without plenty to eat and drink. A traditional Italian dinner party is all about connecting with friends and loved ones over your shared passion for quality food. In fact, the Italian word for bread, pane, derives from the Latin ‘panem’, which forms the root of the word ‘companionship’. Throughout history, breaking bread has become synonymous with forming connections with others. A typical Italian dinner party menu, comprises of between 5 and 8 courses: aperitivo, L’antipasto, il primo, il secondo, contorno e insalata, il dolce, formaggi e frutti and, to finish, caffe e digestivo. In this class we will focus on 5 of these components, culminating in a truly delicious Italian feast

Fran Pici Halligan

Growing up in a Sicilian Family, food was not only a source of nourishment but a source for comfort and celebration. We had to celebrate births, weddings, deaths, graduations with an abundance of food. It was a source of love. We were not allowed to eat at friends' homes because dinner time was a time to reflect on the day's events. My father owned an Italian import store in a predominantly Italian neighborhood in Buffalo NY. He brought the food home and my mother turned it into everything wonderful. I was not allowed to touch my mothers kitchen so I learned how to cook by watching. It wasn't until I was older that I was able to get my mother to put her recipes in writing because until then her recipes were vague, a pinch of this, a scoop of that,.. We called her the vague chef. My hobbies are simple, cooking is secondary to making people smile because their bellies are full. Not related, I am a retired Hairstylist of 50 years, a retired executive assistant and a retired professional clown.

March 2025