St. Joseph's Day

In New England and around the U.S., St. Patrick’s Day is a popular holiday named for St. Patrick, the patron saint of Ireland. Celebrated annually on March 17, by Irish and non-Irish citizens alike, St. Patrick’s Day is marked by the color green. On this day, one will often see green shamrocks, green beer, and a parade of green-clad citizens. But two days later, on a lesser-known holiday, Italian Americans trade green for red, corn beef and cabbage for zeppole, and celebrate St. Joseph’s Day.

March 19 is the Feast of St. Joseph, so named for the patron saint of fathers, carpenters, and Sicily. The holiday came to be after Sicily was struck by a severe drought in the Middle Ages.  “The people promised St. Joseph they’d cook a big feast for him if he brought rain.” The rains came, and a crop of fava beans sustained the Sicilian people and saved them from a more devastating famine. Historical celebrations included “a communal meal…held near the center of town” where food “donated and prepared by the wealthy was shared with those less fortunate.” Current festivities carry on the tradition of the communal meal and may also include a parade or an outdoor carnival. Participants are often clad in red, and decorations bear the colors of the Italian flag – green, white and red.

While the fava bean was the original star of the Feast of St. Joseph, Italian Americans in New England have traded them in for zeppole, or St. Joseph’s fritters. Zeppole (pronounced ZAY-poe-lay) are “baked rings of pâte à choux (the dough used to make éclairs) filled with flavored pastry cream and garnished with powdered sugar and a maraschino cherry.” These sweet treats are especially popular in Rhode Island, but can also be found in Italian bakeries in Boston, New Haven, and Springfield.

Learn more about St. Joseph’s history – browse and borrow the items below from MacPhaidin Library.

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