Before Milan-born, Puglia-based Giorgia Eugenia Goggi became the resident chef of Masseria Moroseta in 2017, she had swapped her career as a fashion stylist to return to her family roots in the world of gastronomy, working in various kitchens throughout Milan, London, and Copenhagen. It was there that she realized she was able to satisfy her appetite for creativity through the culinary arts—combining her passions for styling, photography, and storytelling with organic farming, food, and Italian culture.
Her love of food stems from her family and upbringing in Milan, she explains: “Food has always been our emotional language, the act of sitting together at the table, taking time and celebrating the ritual of a shared meal.” Her childhood memories are embedded with images of beautifully set tables, weekend picnics, and hearty seasonal produce sourced at local markets. Giorgia recalls her favorite Christmas dishes from her childhood as evoking some of her most formative food memories. “I love sogliola marinata, typical of Christmas Eve: a 19th-century recipe by Pellegrino Artusi based on tender filets of fish in a marinade of vinegar, citrus fruits, sage and pine nuts,” she adds.
Tortellini in brodo is another classic, she explains, but for her own version of tortellini—which she insists should be very small and strictly handmade, with the help of all family members—she prefers a filling of prosciutto, mortadella, parmesan cheese, and nutmeg. And of course: panettone, which she describes as the king of the Christmas table and her favorite dessert of all time. “I remember as a child opening the wrapping and deeply breathing in that magical scent of butter, citrus fruits, vanilla, sultanas, and candied fruit. The Milanese tradition is to keep it close to a source of heat during Christmas lunch so that it can be eaten warm and fragrant,” she says. “Absolutely perfect.”
However, an Italian Christmas isn’t so much characterized by the menu, Giorgia notes, as traditional dishes change from region to region. Instead, it’s about the shared experience around the table, which is likely adorned with the family’s most treasured linen tablecloth and nonna’s fine plate sets. Universally throughout Italy, the Christmas meal should be slow and relaxed, she explains, eating leisurely, opening “the good bottles” of wine, chatting with family and friends while exchanging gifts, all the while helping each other in the kitchen. “It is a time to get together and celebrate the Italian tradition of togetherness, slowness, and the importance of sharing and passing on these precious traditions.”
Find six of Goggi’s favorite Italian Christmas recipes below.
Cedar fruit salad with fennel seed dressing
Serves 6
Ingredients:
- 2 medium-sized citrons
- Mint/bronze fennel
For the sauce:
- 160 g delicate vinegar, such as sherry or champagne
- 150 g grapeseed oil
- 100 g extra virgin olive oil
- 2 tbsp honey
- 1 tsp Dijon mustard
- 1 tbsp wild fennel seeds
- 1 tsp salt
For the dressing:
- Toast the fennel seeds in a pan for a few minutes until golden and fragrant. Transfer to a mortar and crush to a coarse powder.
- Combine all dressing ingredients in a jug and mix with an immersion blender until fully emulsified. Keep in a glass jar in the fridge.
- Slice the cedar fruit finely using a meat slicer, about 2 mm thick.
- Season the fruit with the prepared seasoning and leave to marinate for 15 minutes so that it softens and absorbs all of the flavor.
- Divide into 6 bowls, arranging the slices harmoniously.
- Garnish with fresh herbs, an extra drizzle of olive oil, and a pinch of Maldon salt.
Carrots with brown butter, chili honey
Serves 6
Ingredients:
- 12 small carrots
- 150 g butter
- 2 cloves of garlic
- A branch of sage
- 2 tbsp chestnut honey
- 25 g cider vinegar
- Smoked chili flakes
- Fresh herbs/flowers for garnish
For the brown butter:
- Place the butter in a thick-bottomed saucepan and cook over medium heat.
- Once melted it will start to foam, afterwards dark specks will begin to appear.
- Lower the heat and allow the flavors to infuse.
- Turn off the heat, add two finely sliced garlic cloves and the sage leaves.
- Let it rest for 30 minutes and strain.
For the carrots:
- Bring water to the boil in a medium-sized pot.
- Add salt and blanch the carrots for 6 to 8 minutes, they should start to soften, without overcooking.
- Place them in ice for 2 minutes to stop them from cooking. Once cool, rub them to remove the peel while maintaining their natural shape.
- Preheat the oven to 220 degrees fan, arrange the carrots on a baking tray lightly greased with oil.
- Roast for 10 minutes, then take the tray out of the oven and brush the carrots with honey, vinegar, and chili.
- Place them back under the broiler and caramelize for a few minutes (be careful, honey has a tendency to burn).
- Arrange the carrots on a serving plate, drizzle with brown butter, and garnish with fresh herbs, more chili flakes, and a pinch of Maldon salt.
Brioche toast with whipped butter and bottarga
Serves 6
Ingredients:
- 6 thick slices of brioche loaf
- 200 gr butter
- 1 tbsp milk
- 1 tbsp yogurt
- 12 gr chopped chives
- 5 gr salt
- 1 unwaxed lemon
- 150 gr grey mullet bottarga, (preferably whole, to be grated on the spot)
Method:
- Let the butter soften at room temperature for about 15 minutes, it should be quite soft but still workable.
- Put the butter in the stand mixer and work with the paddle attachment for 10 minutes at medium speed.
- Add milk, yogurt and salt and continue to whisk for a further 10 to 15 minutes.
- The mixture should be soft, textured and airy.
- Add lemon zest and chives to the butter and work in with a spatula.
- Toast the bread under the broiler for a few minutes, until golden brown.
- Let cool for a few minutes on a wire rack.
- Spread a thick layer of butter and grate generously bottarga on top using a microplane.
- If bottarga is quite fresh and tends to crumble, it can be kept in the freezer to facilitate grating.
- Serve immediately.
Tortellini in onion and saffron broth
Ingredients for the dough:
- 300 g flour
- 200 g eggs (approx. 3 medium eggs)
Ingredients for the filling:
- 40 g brown butter (follow directions for brown butter in the carrot recipe below)
- 90 g milk + 75 g grated parmesan cheese
- 200 g crustless stale bread (not too dry)
- 60 gr grated Parmesan cheese
- 1 small egg
- 1 unwaxed lemon
- 2 g salt
- White pepper/nutmeg
Ingredients for the onion/saffron broth:
- 70 g grape seed oil
- 1 kg white onions
- 200 g white wine
- 1.5 liters water
- 1 g Italian dry saffron pistils
Note: It is recommended to start all preparations a day in advance, so that the mixtures can rest and stabilize.
Method for the dough:
- You can decide to proceed by hand or with a stand mixer. Both methods work very well, of course by hand it takes a little more time and effort.
- Pour the flour onto a work surface (ideally wooden), make a classic fountain shape, and pour the eggs into the center. Work initially with a fork to allow the ingredients to come together, then knead by hand. Continue kneading for about 5 minutes until the mixture is smooth and elastic.
- Cover with cling film and leave to rest.
Method for the filling:
- Start by making a simple cheese sauce.
- Bring the milk to the boil and pour on the first amount of Parmesan cheese (75 gr), wait for a few minutes and emulsify with a whisk. Some lumps may remain, but no worries it does not need to be smooth.
- Cut the bread into cubes and blend it in the mixer.
- Melt the brown butter gently, it should be liquid but not hot. Grate the lemon zest and nutmeg into the butter and let the flavors infuse.
- Combine fondue, breadcrumbs, Parmesan cheese (60 gr), butter, eggs and aromatics in a bowl. Mix all ingredients together and work with a spatula until the mixture is smooth and compact. Place the mixture in a container and let it rest for a few hours in the fridge.
- Roll out the dough with the help of a pasta machine, making it as thin as possible, you need to be able to almost see through.
- Once rolled out, cut 4cm squares and distribute the filling in small balls in the center of each square.
- Moisten the edges of the square with a little water and fold.
- Make triangles, making sure to close them tightly around the filling without leaving air bubbles, and then join the two side edges together (honestly, the best thing is to look for a video and see how to do the movement, because it s really complicated to explain it in words!)
- Proceed with the other squares until you run out of ingredients.
- Once finished, tortellini should be placed on a tray with a clean tea towel, well spaced out.
Method for the onion and saffron broth:
- Peel the onions and finely slice them.
- Heat the grapeseed oil in a medium-sized saucepan, add the sliced onions, and cook for 10 to 15 minutes until golden brown.
- Deglaze with white wine, allow the alcohol to evaporate for a couple of minutes, add cold water.
- Simmer gently for a couple of hours.
- Strain, taste and adjust with salt.
- Before serving, moisten the saffron with a little lukewarm broth, add to the rest of the pan and leave for a few minutes to let the flavors bloom.
- Cook the tortellini in boiling water for 4 to 5 minutes.
- Distribute them in 6 bowls and pour the hot broth over.
- Finish with an extra drizzle of brown butter, serve immediately.
Pannacotta with bay leaf and citrus
Serves 6
Ingredients for the pannacotta:
- 250 gr milk
- 250 gr cream
- 75 gr caster sugar
- 5 fresh bay leaves
- 8 g gelatin
Method:
- Bring milk to the boil, off the heat add caster sugar and the bay leaves, broken up by hand.
- Whisk well and cover with a lid and leave to infuse for at least 30 minutes.
- Strain the milk, heat again, and dissolve the gelatin previously soaked in cold water.
- Gradually add the cream to the milk mixture and mix well.
- Pour the mixture, using a jug into small serving bowls (100 g per serving).
- Refrigerate for at least 3 hours.
Ingredients for the citrus gastrique:
- 70 g orange zest (cut with a peeler)
- 50 g lemon zest (cut with a peeler)
- 2 bay leaf
- 500 g fresh clementine juice
- 250 gr fresh orange juice
- 200 g dry white wine
- 150 g fresh lemon juice
- 15 g shoyu
- 60 g sugar
Method:
- Make a dark blond caramel with the sugar, and add gently the juice mix (it may bubble up briskly, no worries).
- Add the zests and herbs.
- Cook over low heat for one hour until syrupy.
- Strain and store in the refrigerator in a jar.
- Garnish each panna cotta with a thin layer of gastrique, slices of kumquats, and drops of evo oil.
Pear shrub tonic with warm spices
Ingredients:
- 800 g diced pears
- 800 gr cane sugar
- 1 lt water
- 5 gr timut pepper
- 10 g coriander seeds
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 3 bergamots
- 1 tsp turmeric powder
- 380 ml unpasteurized apple cider vinegar
Method:
- Toast peppercorns and coriander seeds in a hot pan until fragrant.
- In a medium pot combine pears, sugar, water, spices, and bergamot zest.
- Bring to the boil and simmer gently for one hour.
- Pour into a container and add the juice of the three bergamots previously zested.
- Let rest at room temperature for 24 hours.
- The next day add the vinegar, mix well, and leave to macerate for a couple of days.
- Strain everything and place in a glass bottle to keep in the fridge.
- The proportions for a good gin tonic with a spiced twist are: 25 g pear shrub, 40 g gin, tonic water, a pinch of salt, two grapefruit slices, and ice cubes.
