Tag: la scarabattola

Happy St. Joseph’s Day!

Posted on by alice

Alice: It’s March 19th which means it’s Father’s Day in Italy as well as the Festa di San Giuseppe or Saint Joseph’s day which also means…zeppole!
In a different time I would probably be heading down the sunny streets of Naples to Bar Primavera or Leopoldo to get that fresh pastry topped with custard cream and a candied black cherry. I prefer fried but baked is also tasty if you want something a bit lighter-everyone has their preference. Every March 19th you’ll see people walking around with nicely-wrapped trays of these balls of goodness which might be bite-sized or large enough to share with friends and family.


baked zeppola di San Giuseppe

Fiorella: and do not forget the zeppole al forno (baked) made by Attanasio or Mignone. In these days pasticcerie are closed and I can only dream about them. I can almost smell and taste these celestial pastries while doing a virtual walk to a Church dedicated to St Joseph.

The church of San Giuseppe dei Ruffi at the crossing of via Duomo with our beloved via Anticaglia, was originally founded by some noblewomen, amongst them members of the Ruffo family.
Starting from 1669, the construction of a new church and a convent were run under the architect Dionisio Lazzari. However, because of a dispute with the nuns of the nearby convent of Donnaregina, the project was stopped to restart much later.
It was only in 1682 that Dioniso Lazzari was able to complete the nave and the main altar, thus giving the nuns the use of the church.
Arcangelo Guglielmelli, helped by his son Marcello, continued the project as we can see in the scenografic vestibule frescoed with his typical illusionistic spacial decorations.
Guglielmelli’s eclectic solutions were also adopted for the cloister of the nuns. Part of the cloister was later demolished in the 19th century to enlarge Via Duomo.
At the death of Guglielmelli in 1723, Nicola Tagliacozzi Canale-architect, engineer and scenographer-continued the work.
Amongst the splendid pieces visible in the church, we can perhaps just point out the intricate marble decorating the main altar and the side chapels. They are all fabulous examples of late-Baroque Neapolitan commesso marmoreo. From Latin committere, the joining together of inlaid marble, mother of pearl and pietre dure.
Matteo Bottigliero (who also worked at the Guglia dell’Immacolata, the monumental spire in piazza del Gesù), Giovan Domenico Vinaccia (famous for the silver altar in the Chapel of St. Gennaro in the Cathedral), Bartolomeo and Pietro Ghetti and possibly the talented Giuseppe Sanmartino (author of the Veiled Christ in the Sansevero Chapel) are only some of the scupltures decorating San Giuseppe dei Ruffi with pomp and splendour.
Pomarancio, Luca Giordano and other painters completed the sumptuous ornamentation.
The cupola was frescoed by Francesco de Mura in 1741 with the Glory of St Joseph. Joseph is the righteous man and father for the Christians, from where the celebration of Father’s day on March 19th.
Talking about St Joseph, I cannot ignore his constant presence in the fabulous windows of one of my favourite Nativity scene shops.


San Giuseppe by La Scarabattola

Neapolitan Nativity and pastori (shepperds) are well known world-wide and decorate Naples historical centre all year round. The Scarabattola atelier is one of the best places to admire the art that started in Naples in the 18th century and spread all over Europe and the world. Did you know that the Christmas tree at the MET in NYC is decorated with Neapolitan 18th century angels?
Charming Lello and his brothers and sisters–the Scuotto’s-follow the noble tradition by always introducing in their fabulous creations a perfect fusion with Naples’ history, legends and daily life.

Alice: Oh, our city, so lavish with art and so rich with culture! I wish I could be there to walk through the church of San Giuseppe dei Ruffi and taste one of the pastries from Mignone which are only available in this period. However, I’m still celebrating the greatness of Naples from afar, even if I can’t be there right now.
Though I usually buy zeppole in the local pastry shops near my house, I’ve eaten homemade zeppole di San Giuseppe which are delicious. Today I will take on the task of creating one of my favourite deserts from Naples because I cannot buy them at the store. I hate to disappoint my Neapolitan friends, but I’m currently in England where a lot of the stores are out of eggs and flour so I’ll have to get creative with the mixture. I’ve had help from my friend’s mom so I at least get the process right. It’s been a great, virtual experiment to keep the fabulous Neapolitan traditions going even during this time where we are separated.

Here is the recipe, straight from Marco’s mom:

3 eggs
½ litre of milk
3 tablespoons of sugar
3 tablespoons of flour
Lemon zest or 1 tsp vanilla
Put the milk in a small saucepan on medium with two lemon zests or vanilla.
In a bowl mix the eggs, sugar and flour together.
When the milk is very hot but not boiling, put two ladles full of the milk in the egg mixture and stir together. After that, combine everything in the bowl with the milke in the saucepan until it has the consistency of a custard cream. Let cool.
1 cup of water
½ cup of butter
A pinch of salt
1 cup of flour
4 eggs
Put one cup of water, the butter and salt in a pot and bring it to a boil. Once the butter is melted, take the mixture off of the stove and add the flour. Put the pot back on the burner on low and keep stirring until everything is well-mixed. Let cool.
Once the mixture has cooled, mix the batter with your fingers and add the eggs one at a time with a wooden spoon. After the eggs are added you can either blend the batter with an electric mixer or by hand until the batter forms peaks.
Using a piping bag, make a tight wreath or small puff on greased parchment paper. Make sure there is a small hole in the centre.

You can either bake for 30 minutes at 400 degrees Fahrenheit or fry on medium heat in abundant canola or vegetable oil. If you choose to fry, Marco’s mom say you’ll need two pots, one small and the other medium-sized. First, place the zeppola puff in the small pot and cook on each side. It will get bigger so you’ll need to finish cooking it in the bigger pot. Once it is nice and golden, you can take it out of the oil and place on paper towels for it to dry and cool.
Once cool, dip both sides of the pastry in sugar, fill the little hole with the custard cream (using a piping bag) and add the black cherry.
Buon San Giuseppe!

The Fabulous Prince of Laughter

Posted on by alice

In this time of great challenges due to the outbreak of coronavirus disease, we of Naples Fabulous wanted to share a post about an extraordinary person who will hopefully bring some lightness to your days. We’ve been trying to keep our spirits high through reading, music, films and art about Naples and we thought: who better to represent Neapolitan resilience and spirit than this Neapolitan character?

Totò is one of the most beloved figures of the Neapolitan history, art and folklore. But though he has worked with some of the most iconic actors in the history of cinema like Anna Magnani, Vittorio de Sica, Sophia Loren, Mastroianni and movie directors such as Monicelli and Pasolini, many people outside of Italy do not know the work of one of the greatest Neapolitan figures of all time. However, to Italians, he is considered to be one of the most extraordinary comic geniuses of all time.


Totò and Anna Magnani

He went by Totò or simply Antonio de Curtis but actually has an incredibly long name. Starting out as Antonio Clemente, he was born in the heart of Naples – his beloved Sanità – in 1881 to Anna Clemente and the nobleman Giuseppe de Curtis, who never recognized him. He always knew of his noble blood but it wasn’t until he was 35 that he was formally adopted by the Marquis Francesco Maria Gagliardi Focas di Tertiveri. Therefore he inherited a long list of names and a noble title, from which comes the nickname “the prince of laughter”.

Walking the streets of Naples you’ll see icons of his image everywhere, not just in the Sanità. To Neapolitans, Totò represents honour and talent, pride and purpose; he was a champion for the poor and is a symbol of hope. His spirit is woven into the collective conscious of this city and that crooked nose and pointy chin, broken a youth, are as ubiquitous as the landscape of the Vesuvius or the image of the Pizza Margherita or the outline of Capri in the Gulf of Naples. Most bars have a photo or ceramic figure that might be placed alongside an image of the Madonna or Maradona.


Totò by Salvatore Scuotto 2017 – donated by Rober Lèon

To many he is considered to have achieved a uniqueness in comic-tragic style like that of Charlie Chaplin, Buster Keaton or Stan Laurel. Comparisons have even been made with his physicality and the movement technique of Michael Jackson. He grew up poor with an unparalleled work ethic that would accompany him during his entire life. Long after he achieved fame and celebrity, living the bella vita in Rome, he never lost connection with his roots in Naples and was always committed to helping the poor not only in his beloved hometown but everywhere.
His characters in the over 100 films he performed in were often poor, clever people who would, through his iconic, often improvised puns philosophise on the current state of the world and the human condition. This way of living humour through tragedy is emblematic of the Neapolitan spirit and what makes his prolific career symbolic of the triumph of a man who started his life in utter poverty.
His work, rooted in the Commedia dell’Arte tradition, started in Naples at age 15 and would then take him to the stages of Rome where he’d marry his first wife Diana Bandini Rogliani. A few years prior to making his film debut, he’d have a daughter, Liliana whose name would be a source of speculation. Totò had had an affair with the actor Liliana Castagnola whose haunting suicide would remain a mystery for the duration of his life. Though his marriage was dissolved in 1940, Diana and Totò would remain connected until she met another man and Totò married the much younger Franca Faldini.

He’s considered a genius for his comic abilities but his career and art expanded to song writing, music and poetry which had a depth recognised by many and celebrated today. Toto’s most famous song is Malafemmena (Wayward Woman), dedicated to his ex wife Diana.
Often when walking the streets of Naples you’ll hear a trace of one of his songs or, even better, musicians or posteggiatori will serenade diners at the local trattorias which will almost always lead to a sing-a-long of his famous melody.
Here is one of his poems, also engraved in an inscription outside the historic Caffé Gambrinus:

‘A cunzegna

The exchange
In the evening when the sun goes back home
And changes shifts with the moon for the night,
The sun whispers in the moon’s ear
“I’m going home:
Take care of all the lovers!”

Totò is a link between two generations of Italy. People of all ages (and social strata) fluidly repeated his jokes, his gestures and entire phrases from his film by heart because his genius has just as much relevancy in today’s world.
Fifty years later Totò’s films still make people laugh, demonstrating the modernity of his humour and some of his characters. He grew up in the densely populated neighbourhood Sanità which was a source for much of his material. As a child he observed his neighbours and the most extravagant people who he would later incorporate into comical characters in his performances. This earned him the nickname of “ ’o spione ” (the spy).
In Sanità you can see representations of Totò on every wall and there are two large light installations dedicated to him, one of his outline and the other with an inscription in Neapolitan of his delicate love poem “Core analfabeta” (Illiterate heart). They both welcome those entering into Totò’s native neighbourhood.

Baroque churches, noble buildings, a bustling market with perfume of delicious food and the voices of the authentic Naples captivate and lead us to the discovery of the many faces of the prince of laughter.
Federico Fellini said “His capacity of making us laugh should make him a saint” and in actuality, our fabulous Naples has sanctified him!


Palazzo dello Spagnuolo

The tarallificio Poppella (taralli are typical Neapolitan savory snacks) celebrates Totò with a mosaic at the entrance to the shop as does the wine bar Sciò with a mural. All of the shops in the area have a photo of him and his cherished films.


taralli napoletani

The first “Vicolo della cultura” (cultural alley) in Italy, inaugurated in the Sanità in December 2019 honours him with a wall-painting amongst books free for whoever might want them. The non-profit organisation Opportunity seeks to challenge criminality with culture, colours, light and art. The portrait of Totò is found at the entrance of the itinerant library along with other celebrated Neapolitans such as Sophia Loren, Peppino De Filippo, Massimo Troisi and Pino Daniele.


Via Montesilvano

Yet it is at the Pizzeria e Trattoria Taverna di Totò where we would like to conclude our little homage to this artistic genius.
With happiness and a scrumptious pizza, a delicious potato crocchè and maybe a tasting of a fabulous side dishes of eggplant and friarielli, we will raise a glass to Totò’s wonderful legacy in the company of the kind server, always ready to entertain customers with a genuine smile, in the spirit of the immortal prince of laughter.


pizza Cosacca