I'm not Italian — my parents are German and I married into an Irish clan — but I often wish I were because I think they have the best cuisine and most romantic language.

This is particularly true around Christmas, when you find sweet Italian treats such as raisin-studded panettone and torrone on store shelves and restaurants that cater to those with southern Italian roots start advertising their Feast of the Seven Fishes dinners.

La Vigilia (the vigil), as it's called where it originated, dates from the Roman Catholic custom of abstinence from meat and dairy products on the eve of certain holidays, including Christmas. The feast enjoyed by family members includes seven different seafood dishes, or, one or two different types of fish prepared in seven different ways. (Seven is an important number in the Roman Catholic Church — it's the number of sacraments and days of Creation.)

The practice made its way to the U.S. in the early 1900s, when Italian American families who missed their homeland rekindled the old county's Christmas Eve tradition by preparing a seven-course seafood meal.

While I love seafood, I don't want to cook seven different dishes for a single meal. That's especially the case on Christmas Eve, when I'm usually running around like a madwoman trying to get presents wrapped and grandchildren tucked into bed to await Santa.

But I can certainly handle one recipe, and this oldie-but-goodie from my library of Lidia Bastianich cookbooks is one of my favorites because it's so simple.

The Italian chef and TV star has been making the dish since she opened her first restaurant, Buonavia, in 1971, she writes in "Lidia's Favorite Recipes." Typically served as an appetizer (though it makes a nice light dinner, if served with a salad), it's a favorite dish with her as well, which makes me feel a certain affinity for my adopted nonna.

High heat and speed are essential in preparing this dish, and your pan should be big enough to cook all the shrimp in a single layer. You also need to have all your ingredients ready to go beside the stove, because cooking is super fast.

When buying shrimp, look for local, wild-caught; it will have better flavor and texture. It should smell fresh — like the sea — and not like ammonia. If you buy frozen shrimp, take them out of their bag and place them in a bowl under cold (not warm) running water to thaw. After deveining, rinse and pat shrimp dry with a paper towel before cooking.

I used large shrimp instead of extra-large, so cut them in half instead of into thirds. I also substituted chopped scallion greens for the chives.

Scampi alla Buonavia

PG tested

3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for finishing dish

3 cloves garlic, finely chopped

1 pound (about 25) extra-large shrimp, completely shelled, deveined and cut into 3 pieces

1 tablespoons chopped fresh chives

1/2 cup dry white wine

4 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 4 pieces

1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

1 tablespoon chopped Italian parsley

1/2 teaspoon hot red pepper flakes, or more to taste

Salt to taste

6 1/4 -inch-thick slices of Italian bread, toasted and kept warm

1 lemon, cut into slices, for garnish

Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. (I used a cast-iron pan.)

Add garlic and cook, shaking the pan, until light golden, about 2 minutes.

Raise the heat to high, add shrimp and cook until they turn bright pink and are seared on all sides, about 2 minutes.

Stir in the chopped chives, then add the wine, butter and lemon juice.

Bring to a boil, and cook until the shrimp are barely opaque in the center and sauce is reduced by half, about 2-3 minutes.

Stir in the chopped parsley and crushed red pepper. Season to taste with salt.

Place a piece of warm toast in the center of each of six warm plates. Spoon the shrimp and sauce over the toast, drizzling some of the sauce around the toast.

Decorate the plates with lemon slices and with parsley sprigs, if desired

Serve immediately.

Serves 6.

— "Lidia's Favorite Recipes: 100 Foolproof Italian Dishes, from Basic Sauces to Irresistible Entrees" by Lidia Matticchio Bastianich and Tanya Bastianich Manuali