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Health & Fitness

Celebrate the Season with Family Traditions

Christmas and the holiday season, for me, are a time to reflect, while spending time with long-time friends and family, making new friends and sharing our holiday traditions. XOXO! Debbi

I wanted to share a few of our family holiday traditions with you and I'd love to hear about yours.

I’m happiest when I am moving and the scenery is changing. Whether participating in a sport, eating at a favorite restaurant, viewing a property or hotel, or imagining my next adventure through writing,  my mind is oftentimes engaged in multiple things at once. You can probably relate!

So I love to drive to the City to experience long-time favorites and discover new ones. From bustling Union Square filled with sparkling lights and the Macy’s many Christmas wreaths, to the cable cars ringing with shoppers, tourists and locals alike.

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This year my daughter, Bianca, and I headed to North Beach with our new friends to share with them a few of our favorite traditions. First we dined at L’Osteria. Of course we ordered our favorites, Caprese salad and Margherita pizza. The others dined on delicious pasta and homemade soup.

Italian lesson: Insalata Caprese (salad in the style of Capri) is a simple salad from the Italian region of Campania, made of sliced fresh buffalo mozzarella, tomatoes and basil, seasoned with salt and olive oil.

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In 1889, during a visit to Naples, Queen Margherita of Italy was served a pizza resembling the colors of the Italian flag: red (tomato), white (mozzarella) and green (basil). This kind of pizza has been named after the Queen as Pizza Margherita.

We stopped two doors down at the Italian grocery to purchase gelato. My flavor is black cherry, but there are so many to choose from … what is yours?

The energy in the City revitalizes me. We walked a few blocks, past Victoria Pastry, and then headed to the Embarcadero Center. I am not a professional athlete, but am willing to put everything into whatever I attempt. Ice skating included. (If you plan to go, allow an hour to purchase tickets and wait for your assigned time, or book ahead.)

Something about being on the ice makes me happy. We skated ‘round and ‘round with a crowd of people, many not knowing how to skate … so skate at your own risk. Christmas music playing throughout the plaza, colored lights beaming on the ice, and the Embarcadero Buildings wrapped in glittering lights just like presents. It was a wonderful afternoon and very festive.

As the season of parties, gatherings, socializing, eating and last minute shopping winds down, our Christmas Eve tradition begins.

After attending our annual matinee performance of Tchaikovsky’s Nutcracker ballet in San Francisco, my Sicilian family will sit down to our traditional Christmas Eve dinner with red wine, cracked crab and cioppino, followed by the opening of a few gifts.

Little known fact: Cioppino is a fish stew originating in San Francisco. It is considered an Italian-American dish. Cioppino is traditionally made from the catch of the day, which in the dish's place of origin is typically a combination of Dungeness crab, clams, shrimp, scallops, squid, mussels and fish. The seafood is then combined with fresh tomatoes in a wine sauce and served with toasted bread, either sourdough or baguette. (Click here to try one of many cioppino recipes.)

May your holiday traditions be filled with joy and time spent with loved ones.

There is always something to discover…

I look forward to sharing with you in the New Year.

Merry Christmas from our home to yours!

Debbi DiMaggio

XOXO!

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