Publication of GRANDMA BELLINO ‘S ITALIAN COOKBOOK
RECIPES FROM MY SICILIAN GRANDMOTHER
Available on Amazon Kindle .. Available in paperback July 31, 2015
Ladies and Gentlemen, Hello! I am pleased to announce the publication of my latest book, Grandma Bellino’s Italian Cookbook – Recipes From My Sicilian Grandmother .. It is now out and available on Amazon Kindle, and will be available next week in Paperback , publication Friday July 31, 2015 .. It’s been a labor of love to get this one out. Well, they’re (my books) all a labor of love, and this one is no exception. The book is comprised of recipes from my Sicilian Grandmother Giuseppina Bellino who left Lercara Friddi Sicily with her husband Philipo (my maternal Grandfather) in 1904 for the shores of New York and a new a better life in America .. My maternal grandparents Philipo and Giuseppina settled in in the Yorkville section of Manhattan and lived and worked there for a few years before moving to the Italian enclave of Lodi, New Jersey where my grandfather Philipo set up a shoemaker shop on Main Street in Lodi .. My grandfather worked hard and he and his wife Giuseppina had five children; my mother Lucia, her sister Lilly, and their three brothers Frank, Tony, and James .. My grandfather worked hard, but never made much money .. Often times their low earnings reflected in the family meals which where heavy on Soups and Pasta, and not all that much meat or fish on its own, never-the-less the Bellino’s had a good healthy life .. My grandmother had wonderful recipes from back in Lercara Friddi, and she made friends in Lodi with women who came from Abruzzo, Napoli, Lazio, and Calabria and had regional recipes of their own. The ladies became friends and talked about and swapped the local recipes, so although this book is made mostly of Sicilian recipes from Giuseppina, there are Neapolitan recipes and one from Calabria, and Abruzzo as well. There are also recipes from Giuseppina’s offspring and grandchildren like myself, my cousin Tony and my sister Barbara. The dishes and recipes in this book are filled and come from love, and do hope that people will cook and enjoy this eclectic collection of Sicilian and other italian recipes, some that are popular and well known, along with others that are rarer and less well know, yet wonderful never-the-less. I sincerely hope you all enjoy Grandma Bellino’s Italian (Sicilian) Cookbook, the stories and recipes within.
Daniel
The BELLINO ‘S
Fillipo, Lucia, Tony, Giuseppina
My mother’s sister Lilly and Brothers James
and Frank are not in this picture.
Lodi, New Jersey
1941
SUNDAY SAUCE
WHEN ITALIAN-AMERICANS COOK
by Daniel Bellino – Zwicke
My Nonno
Fillipo Bellino
about 1900
The COUNTRYSIDE
Outside Lercara Friddi
The DUOMO
SANTA MARIA d’ NEVE
The DUOMO
SANTA MARIA d’ NEVE
LERCARA FRIDDI
Friends at Cafe Glamor
Lercara Friddi
Un CANNOLO
At a Bakery in LERCARA FRIDDI
Man in Lercara Friddi
2017
PIAZZA ROMA
LERCARA FRIDDI
SICILIA
Maria Salemi
ANTICA FOCACCERIA S. FRANCESCO
PALERMO
The most famous place to eat in PALERMO. Signature Dish is PANE MILZA
which is a Sandwich made of Beef Spleen, Ricotta and Caciocavallo Cheese
on a Sesame Roll. The ARANCINI (Rice Balls) and PANELLE are great as well.
This place is a “MUST DO” when in Palermo.
The “BIG GUY”
Cafe Glamor
Piazza del Duomo
LERCARA FRIDDI
My SICILIAN HAT , Vacation Journal , and a Wrapped ARANCINI
for Bus Ride from CANTANIA to PALERMO
at the CAFE by The BUS STATION in CATANIA
“They had tasty GELATO , Cannoli , and awesome ARANCINI at this Cafe.”
MALANZANE PARMIGIANO
My first Lunch at VILLA DAFNE AGRITURISMO , ALIA , SICILY
SOPHIA LOREN
The RAGU BOLOGNESE COOKBOOK
by Daniel Bellino “Z”
PIAZZA SINATRA
AGRIGENTO
.
.
Daniel Bellino Zwicke 
Thank you for your publications that contain Sicilian recipes. My Sicilian roots are from Lercara Friddi as well. My grandmother (last born) was the first of her family born in America. I was not as attentive to her cooking and family stories as I should have been. I even lived with her for 4 years while attending college. I do remember much of her cooking …… and baking. She talked about her brothers and sisters who were much older and all deceased by the time I knew about them. Her parents were Giuseppe Miceli and Carmela Vento. I have much of their family info from the records of Lercara. They came to America in 1893 and settled in Western NY after a brief stay in Buffalo. One of her dishes was a frittata made from burdock….she called them garduna. I think it was a substitute for the cardone plant that grows in warmer climates and is related to the artichoke. the burrs on a burdock resemble the flowers of the cardone and artichoke. It is too cold in Western NY for Cardone’s to survive. I am looking forward to reading all of your publications on Sicilian cooking.
Hi Jerry, Thanks for your nice comments. It’s always great hearing form a fellow Sicilain-American and especially one from Lercar Friddi .. Thanks for sharing with me that info on your Nonna making a Frittata with burdock. You’re probably right, that the burdock is a substitute for Cardon and or Artichoke .. After maccheroni e zuppa, Frittata are one of my favorite things to make and right about, I make many different kind.
Thanks Again Jerry,
Take Care e Mangia Bene,
Daniel
What an exciting page to find! My family is also from Lercara Friddi, and Jerry, your grandmother’s parents are in my family tree!
I would be interested in how my grandparents were related to you. They emigrated in 1894…first to Buffalo, NY and then to Geneseo, NY where they settled.
Hi, Is the surname Bellino or Salemi? My grandparents, my mother’s father and mother immigrated to New York in 1904. They lived on the upper east side of Manhattan for a couple years before they moved to Lodi , New Jersey where my grandfather Fillipo Bellino opened a Shoemaker Shop on Main Street in Lodi. My maternal grandmother’s maiden name was Salemi, and both of my maternal grandparents came from Lercara Friddi, Sicily.
Headed on a cruise to Brazil so I have little time to respond as I would like. I found that a Cristina Salemi md. Sebastiano Miceli and emigrated to Rochester, NY. Sebastiano was accompanied by the “padrone” of many Sicilans who emigrated to Western New York. This was Antonino Aprile who md. my grandmother’s sister Catarina Miceli. A relationship was mentioned between Sebastiano and Catarina although my research does not verify this. Sebastiano was born in Alia in 1841 and md. Crisitna in Lercara in 1869. Sebastiano was a butcher. I could not find a direct relationship between any of my direct line descendants. Cristina Salemi was the daughter of Antonino Salemi and Francesca Macaluso. My gg-grandmother was Guiseppa Macaluso who was md. to Gaetano Miceli…..my grandmother’s grandparents. Won’t be back until Dec. 26.
PS Another great-grandmother, Carmela Vento had a brother Giovanni and other close relatives who emigrated to Brazil around 1900…..lived in Sao Paulo, and later came to the US and settled in California….Sferlazza and DiPiazza were their surnames. As they say in Italy and Brazil…Ciao! Some Brazilians use the spelling “Xau” .
Hi Jerry, Have a wonderful time in Brazil. I stayed at an Agriturismo in Alia this Summer. When you get a chance, look at the picture a just posted of Maria Salemi. They have a butcher shop in the Piazza del Duomo Lercara Friddi “Maccerleria Salemi” Ciao, Daniel
Hi Jerry, Is your family from Lercara Friddi , Sicily. My maternal grandparents came from Lercara Friddi, Sicily to New York in 1904 ..
If you’d like to contact me, message me on my Facebook page @ https://www.facebook.com/AuthorDanielBellinoZwicke
Looking forward to hearing from you,
Thanks, Daniel
Hi, This is Daniel. I’m looking over an old comment you made to me. Your family comes from Lercara Friddi, as did my maternal grandparents Fillipo and Josephina Salemi Bellino. If you’d like to contact me, please send me a message on my Facebook page @ https://www.facebook.com/AuthorDanielBellinoZwicke …
Looking Forward to hearing from you,
Daniel