Italian American Mother Series - Making Nutella Cupcakes

In honor of Mother's Day, we invited the Italian American Girl readers to submit their favorite story about their Italian -Italian American mother.  Here are a few of the most touching stories. 

By Ann Minard

I love cupcakes and I think this goes back to my childhood and the horrible lack of cupcake goodness throughout most of  it. Growing up in a First Generation Italian home cupcakes were not really my Mom's forte: why make silly old cupcakes when you can make homemade Cannoli, Biscotti, and French Candies? But I always had a deep longing for those oh so simple yet oh so good  All-American cupcakes, and here's why: 1) The size, you get your very own cake! 2) They are portable each having their own carrying case. 3) They are so adorable! 4) Easy to serve, no cutting. 5)Fun to decorate making each and everyone unique if you desire to do so. I guess these All-American treats are a lot like us as Americans: Carefree, Individual, and quite Adorable!

I do have to confess though that my Mom did give in and made me chocolate cupcakes for my 10th birthday, as you can see in the photo below. Although I am sure the very idea of making cupcakes seemed rather silly to such an experienced baker and pastry maker, she could whip out 100 homemade cannoli shells in an afternoon and made 100's of homemade candies and cookies every Christmas, my Mom humbled herself and baked me regular old chocolate cupcakes.

And many years later I finally understood my mother's struggle to give in to such a simple request  when on my daughter's birthday I asked her what "special foods" I could make her for her birthday meal and she all too quickly responded, "Frozen tater-tots and pop-tarts!"

 Nutella Cupcakes Recipe

This recipe is a nod to my Italian American roots: Hershey Cupcakes with Nutella frosting!

Ingredients
2 cups sugar
1 3/4 cups all purpose flour
3/4 cup Hershey's cocoa powder (This is the recipe on the back of the box.)
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
1 cup milk
1/2 cup oil or 1 stick butter melted
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup boiling water
Frosting: 1 small  jar Nutella

Directions
Line 2 cupcake trays with cupcake liners and spray each with some vegetable spray.
Heat oven to 350.
Mix all the dry ingredients together, including the sugar.
Add the milk, eggs, vanilla, and butter and mix for 2 minutes on low with a mixer.
Add the boiling water and stir just until combined.
Using a 1/4 cup measuring cup or ice-cream scoop fill each cup 2/3 full with the batter.
Bake for 22-25 minutes. Cool trays on racks for 5 minutes. Run a knife around edges if any seem to be stuck to the pan.
Flip over on to rack, bang bottom and release onto tray, flip each cupcake over and cool completely.
Frost with Nutella!

Note: This recipe make about 30 cupcakes but I find that if you let the batter sit and wait for the first batch to bake and cool they do not bake as well so I usually just make 24 using my 2 (1 dozen) trays at once on the same oven rack and throw out the rest.
Leave these cupcakes out on a counter and covered as they do not refrigerate well.

*Permission to use photos by Ann Minard Tweet

Happy Mother's Day to my Italian Mother....

Here is a picture of my mother, Francesca. This picture was taken in Reggio Calabria,Italy while we were there visiting on vacation. It's difficult to sum up what a mother means to a person or how they've positively affected you. Don't get me wrong my mother drives me nuts too.. LOL but --I love my mother and thank her for not letting me forget who I am.. Happy Mother's Day Ma!


Photo: Copyright of ItalianAmericanGirl.com - Italian American Girl 2012 - You must ask permission for reuse. Tweet

Italian Americans Celebrate Mother's Day- Pavarotti Sings, "MAMMA."

Dedicated to our Italian Mothers. Tweet

Pasta e Fagioli.

So, to my surprise tonight, my mother brought me pasta e fagioli. (fa-sho-lee-Calabrese pronunciation) I love, love, love it...especially because my mother cooks it so incredibly well. The recipe is seriously top secret and no one seems to be able to duplicate it. Funny story, though..one of my good friends got word my mother was bringing me this for dinner and it immediately sets her off, a.) because she's jealous that my momz brings me dinner ( I should be ashamed, NOT) and b.) she can't make it, even though she is a good cook. So, as of tonight, she had emailed, texted, and called for the exact ingredients.

So, I thought, ok..I'll be nice and ask my mother what's in it and give it to my friend, who by the way, her and her husband are gourmet chefs. So, I ask my mother, "hey, ma, can you give me the ingredients for the pasta e fagioli for my friend?" She kinda laughs like in a way that says, "yeah right, poor girl..she doesn't know how to make pasta e fagioli,..too bad for her." But, being the interpreter of Italian mother noises, sighs, and facial expressions, I knew this meant, that my poor friend was not getting the recipe. Although, I enjoyed my pasta e fagioli, it turned out to be one of those Italian moments that we laugh about, who knew pasta e fagioli could be such a funny dinner. Tweet

Italian Americans, What Really Matters To Us When It Comes To Connecting With Our Heritage?

Italian Americans constitute almost 6% of the population here in the United States. That's a good chunk of us here in America that were brought here by our mothers, fathers, aunts, uncles, grandfathers and grandmothers. We might be close in the generation gaps or really removed by fourth and fifth generations. Either way, no matter how far you fall from the generation tree we are all seeking to hold onto our culture and identity.

Sometimes, if you meet someone out and start talking about your background, you might come to a familiar conclusion that you're both Italian or know of each others similar upbringings. These familiar cultural characteristics that we identify and try to grasp are what hold the Italian Americans together. Sometimes the guys who act the parts of the stereotypes we aren't so fond of, just don't know any better, and to them this is their part of the culture they think is the culture. I guess, it might be true..everyone wants to be Italian.

We hold onto what we can, we are American --rightfully and proudly so, but one day once the generations fall further and further apart, we will be grasping onto the time capsule of traits, familiarities, traditions and culture. What really matters to me is keeping my heritage real and tangible. I see how easy it is to dilute our heritage when we are submerged in an everyday melting pot. It has to be our job to keep these amazing traditions and feelings of identity preserved, active and sacred.

Does the feeling of holding onto your culture bring you closer to your roots? Do you have a sense of pride and love for where you came from? Could the answers to these questions help us in figuring out what really matters to us when connecting to our Italian heritage? Tweet