What characterizes Italian-American cooking?
“Back in Italy,” recalled Lombardi, “my mother would make a parmigiana with eggplant or zucchini and a little Pecorino Romano.” The traditional vegetable “parmigiana” was a humble casserole of pan-fried vegetable slices and grated, aged cheese. Here it was transformed into veal Parmesan, featuring a veal cutlet that would have been considered gigantic in the Old Country, a long-cooked sauce made from canned, imported tomatoes, and a blanket of melted mozzarella cheese, a fresh cheese which could be made from American milk. “Everybody likes melted cheese,” said Lombardi. Another hallmark of the Italian-American kitchen is the generous portions. Guy Lombardi acknowledges that servings at his restaurant are three to four times bigger than they would be in Italy. “I have customers who go to Italy, then they come to Mamma Lombardi’s and say, ‘Thank God we’re back — the portions there are so small.
