My grandfather was in the Navy in World War II. Three of his brothers also served. His brother Joe was wounded and received a Purple Heart. His brother Carl was awarded a Bronze Star. His oldest brother, Emil was in the Army. Brother Louie was in the Navy during the Korean War. That’s just on my grandfather’s side of the family! Three of these brave men in my family were in their late teens when they served. My grandfather was 22 with a wife and 2 kids when he served. Great Uncle Carl was 23 with a wife and child.
My grandfather, Steve Fogliani on the left with a friend in the Navy.
On my grandmother’s side of the family, her father (my great grandfather) served in the Italian Army during WWI, two of her brothers (Mike & Al) were in the Navy during WWII, one on a carrier and one on a destroyer. Joe was in the Army for WWII and Chet was in the Army during the Korean War. These great uncles all joined when they were in their mid to late teens.
Nona’s brother Al is standing on the far left, Chet is kneeling on the far left, and Joe is kneeling next to Chet. The other 5 are friends of the brothers.
There were also some great uncles who married into the family who served in either WWII or the Korean War. Some of my dad’s cousins served in Vietnam. We were fortunate not to have lost any family members during these wars, although one cousin of my dad’s died from liver damage due to Agent Orange.
Standing, L to R: Great Uncle Sam Genovese, my Grandfather Steve Fogliani, Great Uncle Chet Pisa & Great Grandfather Carlo Pisa. Kneeling: Great Uncles, Joe Pisa, Mike Pisa and Joe Bonafede.
Our Memorial Day cookout is going to have lots of good food and we are going to remember and be thankful for all the service men & women who insure our freedom with their service and their lives.
Strawberry & White Chocolate Tart (adapted from a magazine 10+ years ago-too long ago to remember which one!)
Crust:
- 16 Oreo cookies (about 7 ounces)
- 3/4 cup almonds (4.5 ounces)
- 4 tablespoons melted butter
Filling:
- 3/4 teaspoon unflavored gelatin
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 4 ounces cream cheese at room temperature
- 8 ounces white chocolate chips or white baking chocolate
- 2 cups halved strawberries
- fresh mint leaves for garnish
Crust: Grind the nuts in a food processor. When they are finely ground, add the broken Oreos and process. Gradually add in the melted butter.
Almonds & Oreos & butter make a delicious crust!
Press the mixture into a deep dish pie plate, covering the bottom and the sides. Bake the crust for 8 minutes at 375°. Remove the pie crust from the oven and let it cool. Refrigerate the crust while preparing the filling.
Prebaking the crust keeps it from getting soggy.
Filling: Sprinkle the gelatin over the cream in a small bowl. Let it stand until the gelatin is softened, about 5 minutes. Melt the white chocolate chips in another small bowl in the microwave for 1 minute on medium power. Stir the chips and continue adding 30 seconds at a time, stirring in between each cycle in the microwave, until the chips are melted. Set the melted white chocolate aside. In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat the cream cheese until it is smooth. Add the cream-gelatin mixture, beating it all together until it has a smooth consistency.
The cream cheese-cream-gelatin mixture will begin to thicken as it is combined.
Working quickly to avoid hardening of the chocolate, add the melted chocolate to the cream mixture, combining thoroughly. Spread the filling evenly into the cooled crust and refrigerate until the filling is firm, at least 1 1/2 hours.
This creamy filling gets spread into the baked crust.
Rinse and hull the strawberries, then pat them dry. Halve the strawberries and distribute them over the pie just before serving. Garnish the pie with fresh mint leaves. Keep the pie refrigerated until ready to serve and refrigerate any leftovers.
So cool and refreshing!
Happy Memorial Day! ~Linda
Strawberry & White Chocolate Tart (adapted from a magazine 10+ years ago-too long ago to remember which one!)
Crust:
- 16 Oreo cookies (about 7 ounces)
- 3/4 cup almonds (4.5 ounces)
- 4 tablespoons melted butter
Filling:
- 3/4 teaspoon unflavored gelatin
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 4 ounces cream cheese at room temperature
- 8 ounces white chocolate chips or white baking chocolate
- 2 cups halved strawberries
- fresh mint leaves for garnish
Crust: Grind the nuts in a food processor. When they are finely ground, add the broken Oreos and process. Gradually add in the melted butter.
Press the mixture into a deep dish pie plate, covering the bottom and the sides. Bake the crust for 8 minutes at 375°. Remove the pie crust from the oven and let it cool. Refrigerate the crust while preparing the filling.
Filling: Sprinkle the gelatin over the cream in a small bowl. Let it stand until the gelatin is softened, about 5 minutes. Melt the white chocolate chips in another small bowl in the microwave for 1 minute on medium power. Stir the chips and continue adding 30 seconds at a time, stirring in between each cycle in the microwave, until the chips are melted. Set the melted white chocolate aside. In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat the cream cheese until it is smooth. Add the cream-gelatin mixture, beating it all together until it has a smooth consistency.
Working quickly to avoid hardening of the chocolate, add the melted chocolate to the cream mixture, combining thoroughly. Spread the filling evenly into the cooled crust and refrigerate until the filling is firm, at least 1 1/2 hours.
Rinse and hull the strawberries, then pat them dry. Halve the strawberries and distribute them over the pie just before serving. Garnish the pie with fresh mint leaves. Keep the pie refrigerated until ready to serve and refrigerate any leftovers.