La Bella Cena: Behind the Scenes at Italian Night

Written by Vincent D'Agostino

Friday, 17 October 2008

Steam billows into the air in a steamy cloud and the mushrooms sizzle as Christendom Senior Josepha Bertolini, keeping a keen watch over her carefully prepared ingredients, pours them into her risotto con funghi e panna. This is just one of the many Italian specialties being meticulously prepared for Christendom College’s annual Italian Night, a celebration of the peninsula’s culture and fine cuisine. As Josepha prepares the risotto, the kitchen staff, along with numerous volunteers who came out for the sole purpose of contributing to the effort, scurry back and forth, listening intently to her orders. Josepha works deliberately and methodically, despite the chaotic nature of working in the kitchen and the added pressure of being pressed for time—the feast will begin in but a few hours.      As she labors over the risotto, the other head chef, Andrew Tatum, works on the roasted pork seasoned with herbs, a dish known as porchetta. He calls Josepha to the oven and opens it to show her how the dish looks. A smile comes over her face and she exclaims in excitement. All their efforts are paying off.      These efforts extended over a period of a few weeks and continue a relatively recent, yet increasingly important and evolving tradition on campus. Begun only a few years ago, Italian Night grew out of a desire to expand the cultural celebrations on campus beyond the strong and vibrant Irish influences. The tradition began with alumnus Mike Schmidt, the so-called “father of Italian Night,” who also helped bring the St. Joseph’s Day feast to campus.      In those early days, the event revolved around the baking of bread contributed by many students. “Everyone in the community used to bring bread and share it,” says Josepha. The tradition has evolved since then.  Individuals no longer bake their own bread and that duty lies almost entirely under the auspices of the head chefs, but the goal of promoting Italian culture and fine food has remained the same.      Since Schmidt, the event has been passed on from one student to another, on whom the responsibilities of continuing the tradition primarily rely. Three generations of students have adopted the event since its inception, and Josepha, the primary force behind this year’s rendition, was the fourth student to take over the tradition.      Josepha ambitiously sought to expand the tradition in many ways this year. She began preparing weeks ahead of time, meeting with her co-chef Andrew, as the two began figuring out the portions, the budget, and the recipes. She was driven by a desire to share the cuisine of her ancestors with the rest of the College community, to get people excited about the event, and to set a precedent for the future. Foods were decided upon, recipes were researched, and volunteers were called.      Finally, the day before the event, everything began to come together. Josepha entered the kitchen at ten in the morning on Friday to prepare the numerous dishes, and Andrew followed her around three, to begin to bake the bread. That night the volunteers amassed in the kitchen to contribute to the effort. They had much to do, but the group managed to maintain a joyful attitude that night.      The next day the Student Activities Council joined in and set up the tables and prepared the decorations in the dining area as Josepha and Andrew led the final leg of the race in the kitchen. On a break from his labor, Andrew remarked that the event was “all about the passion and the love you put into it.” The passion showed.      That night, standing before the entire College community, Josepha announced that Catherine Carducci will lead the event next year. Catherine will be the fifth person to do so since the tradition began. And it is in this small yet important act, in this passing on of a mantle of responsibility, that a tradition continues.

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