When exactly Italy and the United States began a cultural exchange is debatable and real historical scholars would probably point to other points of departure, but for Cookicletta, the most important initial exchange started with Christopher Columbus' voyages to the Americas in the late 15th and early 16th centuries. Though technically Columbus, an explorer from the Republic of Genoa, traveled further south in the Americas than what was to become the United States proper, his journeys began an important trend in which certain crops from the New World were taken back to Europe and eventually grown there, while others were imported to the New World from Europe and subsequently cultivated there. Tomatoes, pumpkin, potatoes and corn literally did not exist in Italy, or what was to become Italy, before 1492 and wheat, which takes up not only a massive amount of farming land in the United States(49 million acres as of 2012), but is also the primary ingredient in all of those carbs Americans love, didn't arrive until Columbus brought it. Therefore, many of the recipes that we will demonstrate on Cookicletta are only possible thanks to the tenacity of an Italian explorer, whose original aim was to reach the East Indies.
Eventually two wars were to have a massive impact on what Columbus started: the American Civil War and World War 2._cc 781905 -5cde-3194-bb3b-136bad5cf58d_ The Civil War fueled immigration to the US from a newly unified Italy because the high level of casualties on the American end demanded new, able bodies. This immigration wave came primarily from southern Italy, which after years of foreign mismanagement and new, crippling taxes was overly populated and poverty stricken, so much so that the new Italian government actually encouraged emigration. Between 1870 and 1914 alone over 4 million Italians immigrated to the United States and today Italian Americans comprise roughly 5% of the US population. In fact, 9 million more Italians settled elsewhere during this period, primarily Brazil and Argentina, making Italy the launchpad of the greatest mass exodus in recorded history, something to remember as she now sees enormous waves of immigration to her own shores._cc781905-5cde-3194-bb3b- 136bad5cf58d_ When World War 2 arrived, this same area of Italy, the south, more specifically Sicily, was the location of the Allied invasion codenamed Operation Husky. Mussolini had appointed people to eradicate the Mafia from Sicily prior to World War 2, and while he hadn't completely succeeded, the murder rate had dropped dramatically and many Mafia bosses had left the island, some eventually ending up in the United States. All of that changed when the Americans arrived. Not only were many former Mafia participants released from jail, several were given prominent positions of power by the US in the crackdown on fascism._cc781905-5cde-3194-bb3b -136bad5cf58d_ In essence, the island exchanged one kind of dictatorship for another.(1) This shift in power changed the trajectory of history for both Italy and the US. For better or for worse, it was a collaboration between two entities that, as history moved forward, continued to shape politics and policy for years to come.
Thus, tomatoes made pizza possible._cc781905-5cde-3194- bb3b-136bad5cf58d_ Civil-War-fueled immigration made the first pizzeria in Manhattan, Lombardi's, possible. Lucky Luciano, an imprisoned US mafioso who helped the Allies, made the easy invasion of Sicily, possible. World War 2 and the resurgence of the Mafia made the agromafia possible, which now exports vast amounts of fake extra virgin olive oil into the US. This cultural, historical, economical collaboration runs deep.
While the aim of Cookicletta, in general, is to promote and celebrate the more positive aspects of the American - Italian relationship , one must never forget that while history binds us together in many happy ways, there are some troubling events, both past and present, which prove this to be a real relationship of both ups and downs, zigs and zags. From exploration to food, politics to pizza, we here at Cookicletta are dedicated to documenting and furthering the ongoing relationship between these two countries. We hope to do it in a way that entertains and inspires you to think of the world beyond your living room, your home town or your country, and to realize that we are all intertwined, and that going forward together is the only option there has ever been, or ever will be.
One can argue about when exactly Italy and the United States began a cultural exchange and, in fact, historians indicate different departure dates, but for Cookicletta, the most important initial exchange began with the voyages of Christopher Columbus to the Americas in the late 15th and early 16th centuries. Although technically Columbus, an explorer from the Republic of Genoa, traveled further south into the Americas than what would eventually become the United States of America proper, his travels began a major trend in which certain New World crops were later brought back to Europe and grown there, while others were imported to the New World from Europe and then subsequently grown. Tomatoes, pumpkins, potatoes and corn did not exist in Italy, or what would later become Italy before 1492 wheat, which is grown not only on a huge expanse of farmland in the United States (49 million hectares from 2012), but it's also the primary ingredient in all those carbohydrates that Americans love, and that didn't arrive until Columbus brought them along. Consequently, many of the recipes we will demonstrate on Cookicletta are only possible thanks to the tenacity of an Italian explorer heading towards what he hoped would be the East Indies.
Next, two wars will have a big impact on what Columbus started: the American Civil War and World War II . The Civil War increased immigration to the United States from a single united Italy, as the high American casualties demanded new capable arms. This wave of immigrants came mainly from southern Italy, which after years of foreign mismanagement and crippling new taxes was overpopulated and hit by a deep economic crisis, so much so that the new Italian government actually encouraged emigration. Between 1870 and 1914 over 4 million Italians immigrated to the United States and today Italian Americans amount to 5% of the US population. In fact, 9 million more Italians went to settle elsewhere during this same period, primarily in Brazil and Argentina, making Italy the country with the largest mass exodus in recorded history, something to remember given that now sees huge waves of immigration towards its shores. When World War II arrived, this same area of Italy, the south, more specifically Sicily, was the site of the Allied invasion code-named Operation Husky. Mussolini had appointed people to eradicate the Mafia from Sicily before World War II, and although he hadn't completely succeeded, the murder rate had dropped dramatically and many Mafia bosses had fled the island, some ending up in the United States. All that changed when the Americans arrived. Not only were many former mobsters freed from prison, but many were given important positions of power by the United States in the repression of fascism. In essence, the island traded one sort of dictatorship for another.(1)This shift in power changed the course of history for both Italy and the United States. For better or for worse, it represented a kind of partnership between two entities that, as the following story has shown us, continued to shape politics in the years that followed.
Thus, tomatoes made pizza possible. Immigration fueled by the Civil War made possible the first pizzeria in Manhattan, Lombardi's Pizzeria. Lucky Luciano, a mafioso imprisoned by the United States has helped the Allies by making possible a smooth invasion of Sicily. World War II and the resurgence of the mafia made possible the agro-mafia, which now exports huge quantities of fake extra virgin olive oil to the United States. Cultural, historical and economic collaboration is deeply rooted.
While the purpose of Cookicletta in general is to promote and celebrate the most positive aspects of the American - Italian relationship, not one must never forget that while history binds us together in many positive ways, there are some turbulent events, past and present, which prove that this is a real relationship of ups and downs and tough times. From exploration to food to politics to pizza, here at Cookicletta we are committed to documenting and fostering the ongoing relationship between these two countries. We hope to do this in a way that will entertain and inspire you to think about the world beyond your own backyard, city or country and to realize that we are all connected to each other and that the only possibility that we have always had and that we will have, is to move forward together.