New Jersey Top 5 on Study Celebrating National Tortellini Day

Today, February 13th is National Tortellini Day. Legend has it that it began back in the 1500s, and was inspired by the navel of  Venus, the goddess of love. It was originally called “torteletti,” but was eventually renamed years later.

In a recent study by Betway Insider, commissioned by BonusFinder, New Jersey is top five among the states that love tortellini the most. We landed fifth behind Illinois, California, Massachusetts, and New York at number one.

Pennsylvania is eighth on the list. I mention this because when I grew up in Philadelphia. Back then I was mesmerized by the smells of the delicious food that filled the air in our home. This was especially true when my Gram would visit and make pasta dinner for everyone. I would beg her during each visit to make her “famous” tortellini.

My parents constantly remind me that as a little kid, I would ask, “Could you make the little curly ravioli?” I don’t remember that, but enough older family members confirm their claim.

My love for tortellini was more than just a preference, it was a passion. If my Gram was at our house, I didn’t mind missing whatever my group of friends had planned. I would hang with her in the kitchen. I vividly recall how she rolled out the dough and crafted each tortellini one at a time.

As he grew older, my love for Gram’s tortellini grew. The different colors and the fillings that she made herself were all delicious. My favorite was the ricotta, but she also made spinach, mushroom, and meat-filled tortellini.

I should point out that none of my grandparents were Italian.  If you tasted her cooking, it was the pasta and other dishes that would make you think she was. However, if you tasted her Jewish apple cake you might think differently.

Being in Philly I still loved me some cheesesteaks and soft pretzels, but the pasta dishes, especially my Gram’s tortellini were the best.

I’ll never forget the family gatherings where the table overflowed with pasta dishes, and the lazy Sundays spent watching my Gram cook. She’s been gone for many years now, but I just happened to marry a woman whose cooking parallels my grandmother’s. While the memory of Gram’s tortellini was the absolute best as a child, my wife’s is also the best as I enjoy it as an adult.

Sometimes when we dine out at our favorite Italian restaurant, the aroma throughout the dining room takes me back to when I was that 4 or 5-year-old boy.

Research provided by

We all know our favorite foods, and we all know our least favorite foods. However, sometimes our favorite foods are ruined by people who do things to them that we don't agree with. For example, I like mustard on a hot dog, but I also like to add ketchup, and some people are outraged, offended, and angry that people like me would do such a thing.

Most would agree that Italians know a thing or two about food, and they've chimed in on similar "food crimes." Bonusfinder Italia surveyed 1400 local folks in Italy to find out which of these alleged crimes against Italian food irks them the most.

This crime ranked as the most egregious, with 64.6% saying it was unacceptable for anyone to do such a thing. I tried to fool my kids with this one when I didn't feel like heating up the gravy/sauce, and they weren't happy about it.

62% said putting pineapple on pizza ranked as the second-most awful food crime. I disagree with this one. I don't seek it out, but if it's served, I'll eat it and don't have a problem with it.

I've never heard of this, but some people will put pasta in cold water and then boil it rather than put it into water that's already boiling. This is the third most disliked thing we do that Italians disagree with. Nearly 57% say it's wrong.

I can't figure out why anyone would do this, but some do. I know the "swirl the fork into the spoon trick" which works well, but the idea of chopping up the pasta makes no sense.

Apparently, keeping food to yourself is also frowned upon by Sicilians. I don't think I would do well with this one.

A couple other things that they don't care for are adding cream to carbonara (I've never done this), adding cheese to a seafood dish, or eating pizza with a knife and fork.