Wow, Clarissa, that sounds scrumptious!! I can just visualize it now!! I can also see this as a Pavlova, with beaten egg whites instead of ice cream if it's too cold for ice cream. What a heavenly dish!!
And Milo, I can just smell the cioppino cooking...it sounds wonderful! The tradition in our family is to have scallop empanada for Christmas Eve dinner. But this year we will not have scallops because my daughter's family doesn't eat shellfish. Fortunately, you can put just about any fish, chicken, or meat in empanadas and it works just fine. The other ingredients are sweet peppers and onions sauteed in olive oil. I always use a combination of red and green peppers.
We have had a traditional Italian dinner for Christmas in the past: a crown roast of beef or pork, filled with vegetables and a first plate of pasta in walnut sauce, with a salad of bitter greens and fruit and an assortment of cheeses, followed by tiramisu. But this year our Christmas dinner will be all American, with a Christmas pumpkin pecan pie at the end.