THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, April 16, 1995 TAG: 9504150146
SECTION: SUFFOLK SUN PAGE: 12 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Cover Story
SOURCE: BY LINDA McNATT, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: CARROLLTON LENGTH: Medium: 56 lines
WHEN MARY ELLEN Pagano married into an extended Italian family 16 years ago, she knew she would be expected to eat and bake her way through marriage.
The realization came when she first visited her husband's family in New Jersey. It was Thanksgiving, she recalled. She remembers feasting on a smorgasbord of everything traditionally Italian: antipasto, lasagna, meatballs, pasta with all kinds of sauces.
Pagano said she was thinking to herself how wonderful it all was when husband Paul's mother announced: ``The main course is on the way.''
That announcment was followed by another traditional meal: turkey and all the trimmings.
With each passing holiday, Pagano's suspicions were confirmed - Italian traditions equal food. At Easter, she was introduced for the first time to a beautifully braided sweet bread intertwined with dyed, boiled eggs.
``They always called it Easter bread,'' said Pagano, as the aroma of baking bread filled the spacious kitchen of her riverfront home in Carrollton. ``I'm not sure if it is traditionally Italian, but it was a tradition with Paul's family.''
And Paul's wife, it became obvious as the years went by, was expected to continue family traditions.
``Paul's grandparents came to this country from Italy,'' she said. ``His grandmother was 98 when she died, and she still had a strong Italian accent. I've learned that Italian women are wonderful and caring. They really spoil their families.''
Eventually, thanks to Mary Ellen Pagano's love for cooking and for spoiling her own family, baking Easter bread each year became a Pagano family of Virginia tradition. And she has added her own touches.
``I bought a loaf of braided bread at a bakery in Hampton, and it was dyed different colors,'' she said. ``It was so pretty, I thought I'd try it.''
Today, friends and neighbors look forward to a loaf of festive Easter bread with dyed eggs baked in. Pagano said her two sons, ages 15 and 9, like to dye the eggs for the bread. That way, they feel like they are a part of the tradition.
Now, Pagano bakes about 25 loaves each year. She also makes her own candy eggs and decorates cakes to look like Easter eggs.
``I feel sorry for my son's wives,'' she said, laughing. ``But I hope my children will carry on these traditions. These kinds of things are important to any family.'' ILLUSTRATION: Staff photo by JOHN H. SHEALLY II
Mary Ellen Pagano's braided sweet bread is intertwined with dyed
boiled eggs. She bakes about 25 loaves every year as an Easter
tradition for her family, friends and neighbors. by CNB