Sicily

The island of desire. The ancient land of the Siculi has been fought over by the Phoenicians and the Greeks, who brought to it civilization and culture, and by the Romans, who made it one of their provinces.
With the fall of the Roman Empire, it ended up under Byzantine domination until the Arabs conquered it, and, thanks to their knowledge of agriculture, science, trading and the arts, the island enjoyed a period of prosperity.
This region went through a further period of development during the Norman and Swabia kingdom and, after the Angevins were chased out, it fell under the Spanish crown then to the Bourbons of the kingdom of Naples.
After having been sought after and owned by many civilizations, Sicily finally became part of Italy with the insurrection of 1860 lead by Garibaldi.

Land
Sicily features a clear unevenness in shape and climate between the coasts and the interior, which is mountainous and often harsh, as is the case of the spectacular Alcantara canyons.
The summits of the Peloritani and Nebrodi Mountains, an extension of the Apennines, reach their pinnacle in the Madonie Mountains. The other mountains of the island are mostly isolated: the Central Plateau, known for the sulphur mines, the Erei Mountains and to the south-west the Iblei Mountains, which together with the valleys near Trapani and the Demone valley, produce the region’s PDO extra virgin olive oils.
One of Europe’s most active volcano, Mount Etna, believed by ancient people to be the furnace of the Roman god Vulcan, is located in the centre of the island. There is a striking contrast between the black mass at the top of the volcano and the slopes with thick vineyard cultivations, almond and hazelnut groves, pie nuts, pistachios and prickly pears fruits.
There are no real plains in Sicily, but narrow alluvial plains crossed by rivers dry in the summer and often devastating during the rainy season, and densely populated and cultivated coastlines. Part of Sicily are also the small groups of the Egadi Islands, at its very tip, Ustica and the Eolie Islands of volcanic origin, the Pelagie and the Island of Pantelleria that stands all alone.

Gastronomic Tradition
Sicily is a crossroad of different gastronomic cultures that have blended together over time, but have maintained their individual recognizable features. Cuscusu (from cuscus) is very popular everywhere. It is identical to its Middle Eastern cousin, served with a rich fish soup. Another Arabic import is the preparation of stuffed rice balls, breaded and then fried, called Arancini.
Among important cultivations, durum wheat enabled the manufacturing of pasta in the eleventh century, which soon spread to other regions such as Liguria and afterwards to Campania.
Maccaruni can be considered the ancestors of all Italian pastas, dressed with rich meat-based sauces, sausages or chicken and topped with salty Ricotta cheese. Among the traditional first courses there are Pasta Norma-style, from Catania, named so in honour of composer Vincenzo Bellini, Pasta with sardines, typical dish from Palermo, and Pasta ’ca muddica, dressed simply with anchovies, oil and breadcrumbs.
Fish main courses are great and appetizing, like the Sardines beccafico and Swordfish a ghiotta.
The delicious Sicilian Ricotta is frequently used in pastry, and often combined with almonds, pistachios, fruits and honey; stuffed Cannoli and the Cassata are just two of the best examples.
And other specialities that cannot be left unmentioned are: the Martorana fruits, small artistic jewels made with almond paste, a variety of great sorbet and ice-cream made with the snow of Mount Etna and citrus juice.

Products
The land in Sicily is not particularly suited for bovine breeding, and this has favoured a greater development of sheep farming and relative production of cheeses such as the Pecorino Siciliano, Ragusano, Piacintinu, a coloured basket with saffron and ricotta cheese.
Swordfish and tuna are the most important catches. For the most part, tuna is processed and preserved, then used for the production of great quality Bottarga, i.e. fish roe, and the typical tuna salami. These fish are eaten fresh prepared with many recipes, also tomato-based ones, possibly using the Pachino variety, olives, and capers from Pantelleria, lemon or various citruses.
As for fruits, a special mention is due to pistachio from Bronte, which is the result of the successful encounter between the plant and a soil rich in mineral salts, sun and Sicilian air, and this fruit is a real gastronomic pearl for the region. It is also an essential ingredient for pastry making, used in grains or paste, to make nougat, Cassata, ice-cream, and it is also used in butchery as an ingredient of sausages and Mortadella. Other important fruits are: blood oranges, table grapes from Canicattì, the prickly pear from Mount Etna and Zibibbo grapes from Pantelleria.
Among vegetables, two stand out in the regional production: the caper from Pantelleria, cultivated in deep ditches dug in the soil to protect it from the wind, and the Pachino tomatoes. Furthermore, there are also eggplants, with different varieties around the entire island, and that are part of many typical dishes, such as the famous Eggplant Parmigiana.
This is a land of fine wines, with high alcohol percentages and also some fortified ones, Sicily is the land of Marsala, and also Malvasia from the Lipari Islands and Moscato from Pantelleria.

Historical curiosities
Ice-cream as we know it today is a typical Italian product. Some believe it was invented by chef Francesco Procopio Cutò from Palermo, in 1686, using the snow of Mount Etna. A successful invention: the shrewd entrepreneur from Sicily was able to take his refrigeration technique inside the kitchens of the kings of France and then to the Café Le Procope in Paris, where his ice-creams, fruit sorbets and the flavoured “ice water”, i.e. crushed ice, met the appreciation of famous people, such as Voltaire, Balzac, Hugo, Diderot and d’Alembert.

Some typical recipes
Here are some key recipes of Sicilian gastronomy. Ready to taste them?

Sfincione
A speciality from Palermo known all over Sicily. From an ancient tradition, this focaccia bread goes well with many courses. And can also be enriched with cheeses or deli meats.

Pasta alla Norma
This is one of the most famous Sicilian recipes all over the world, and it showcases the most typical flavours of the island.

Braciolette di pesce spada
This delicious main course fully enhances the mildness and delicate taste of the flesh of one of the kings of the sea: the swordfish.

Cannoli Siciliani
A crunchy wafer wraps a sweet and enticing cream, in a blast of sensations that express the essence of Sicily.