"Sciusceddu"

As during all holidays, Sicilian tables are a riot of flavors and beauty for the palate and the sight of everyone, young and old, even on Happy Easter. Among the principal dishes of the period, there is the "sciusceddu" a recipe prepared throughout the island but whose origins are strictly of Messina.

About this rich soufflé, based on meatballs, ricotta and broth, there are several variants that affect the method of preparation and ingredients, but I propose the city of the Strait housewives's recipe, where it is prepared, in particular, the Easter Sunday. Typical of the Messina area is, for example, the cheese used for the dish: the Maiorchino, a ewe's cheese of the area of ​​Peloritani mountains. Even of the name "sciusceddu" exist variants: "ciusceddu" or "trusceddu", which however must be traced to, according to various interpretations, the Latin word "juscellum", which means soup, or the Sicilian verb "ciusciare" or the French "souffler", both meaning blow.

Start by preparing a beef broth. Pour into a saucepan 1 litre of water and add the pieces of meat, tomato, onion, celery and carrots. Simmer until all the broth will not be well thickened. Now prepare the dough for the meatballs. In a generous bowl pour the minced meat, finely chopped parsley, minced garlic thin, breadcrumbs, grated cheese (150 grams) and 3 eggs. Knead the dough with your hands to form the balls slightly larger than an olive. When you are done, strain the broth and add, instead, the meatballs, leaving them to cook for about 5 minutes.

While the meatballs are cooking, prepare the cream that will cover them. Open the eggs (6) and separate albumen and yolks. In a bowl pour the ricotta with the remaining cheese (150 grams), yolks, salt, pepper and nutmeg. Mix together the ingredients. Now whip the egg whites, then pour over gently othe ricotta and mix well together with movements from the bottom up.

Arrange on the bottom of a baking tray with high sides the meatballs with the broth, then spread on the cream prepared with ricotta. Bake the whole at 200 degrees and let it cook until the surface will form a golden crust. Shortly before leaving the baking tray from the oven, I suggest you sprinkle with other cheese and finish cooking. Serve hot.




I suggest you serve the "sciusceddu" accompanied by a good white wine with a dry taste. If you prefer more delicate flavors, you can prepare the broth without the meat and use the Parmesan cheese instead of ewe's cheese.


Doses for 6 people:

1 kilogram of veal cut into pieces to prepare the broth
600 grams of minced beef or veal
800 grams of fresh ewe's ricotta
9 eggs (3 for the mixture for the meatballs and 6 for the cream with the ricotta)
300 grams of Maiorchino cheese or, alternatively, another ewe's cheese
100 grams of bread crumbs
2 carrots
1 celery
1 onion
1 ripe tomato
a thinly sliced bunch of ​​fresh parsley
1 very thin chopped garlic clove (the garlic is optional)
1 and a half tablespoon of salt
2 teaspoon of pepper
the tip of a teaspoon nutmeg

Pasta with picchio pacchio sauce (pasta a "picchi pacchiu")

Many of the Sicilian friends will smile when reading the curious name of this recipe. In my research to understand its origin, in fact, I found very little information, but according to the most widespread, it seems that this is a wordplay born from the term "Pacchio" that, in the island dialect, indicates the female sexual organ  and, by analogy, this good and exciting sauce has the same nickname. In the proposed recipe that I use this sauce, originally from Palermo, to season the pasta, but the Sicilian housewives add it in various preparations: the pasta with tenerumi, with borage, with zucchini, but also in soups, soups fish, stewed salt cod and, above all, in a famous dish, also from Palermo, the "babbaluci" (snails that are prepared for the feast of the patron saint, Santa Rosalia, on 14 and 15 July). This versatile sauce, ideal for the palates of our vegetarian and vegan friends and some call also abbreviating pic pac, has the great advantage of being easy and quick to prepare. In short, perfect when you do not have much time and want to accomplish something genuine and cheap.

To realize the "picchi pacchiu" sauce, you must first clean up the tomatoes. After washing, place a saucepan with cold water and dip them in. When the husks tomatoes break, remove them from the pot and place them in a colander. Once they have cooled, peel them, open them in half to remove seeds, then cut them into strips and set aside. Now prepare onions and garlic: remove the peel and chop finely, especially the garlic (if you do not like garlic, cut it into two parts so that it can recognize and delete at the end of the cooking sauce). At this point you place on a frying pan with oil, add onions and garlic and let cook everything for a few minutes (3-4), low heat. After you add the tomatoes, the chopped basil leaves, salt and pepper. Let cook for about fifteen minutes.


Meanwhile boil some water for pasta. When pasta is ready, drain it, pour the sauce, some basil leaves and dish out. Add on every dish abundant grated caciocavallo cheese (or toasted breadcrumbs for our vegan friends). For gourmets who enjoy the spicy flavors I suggest you add the dried red chilies cut thinly.





Doses for 4 people:

- 600 grams/1 lb 5 oz of pasta (long or short, choose the kind you prefer)
- 1,500 kilograms/3 lb 5 oz of tomatoes for sauce (if you like sweet tastes, I recommend you use the "datterini" quality)
- 100 grams/4 oz of grated Caciocavallo cheese (for vegan friends, you can replace the cheese with the toasted breadcrumbs)
- 1 white onion (small or half of a large)
- 2 cloves of garlic, finely chopped (if you do not like garlic, cut into 4 pieces just so you can later remove)
-  salt (2 tablespoons)
-  freshly ground black pepper (2 teaspoons)
-  extra virgin olive oil (3 tablespoons)
-  dried red chilli, finely chopped (2 teaspoons; chili is optional)
- fresh basil leaves (some chopped, others left intact)

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Pasta with pesto sauce in the Trapani's style ("agghiata trapanisi")

Typical of western Sicily, the pesto sauce in the Trapani's style recipe, that is called "agghiata" is, in practice, a reworked version of the traditional pesto sauce. From the East, the Genoese sailors who stopped in the port of Trapani, in fact, did know the pesto to the local inhabitants, who modified it by adding some typical ingredients of their land: the almonds instead of pine nuts, and tomatoes. The ideal would be to step on the various ingredients in the mortar, but if you do not have enough time at your disposal you can use a blender or a mixer. The result will still be a quick and easy sauce to realize that will captivate everyone with its aroma and scents of Sicily. The original recipe also provides for the use of "busiate", a typical pasta format of the Trapani area.

After washing the tomatoes, place on the fire a pot of water and soak the tomatoes. Leave them for about 2-3 minutes until their skin does not begin to split. At that point, drain and let cool them. When they will be cooled, remove the peel, cut them in half and remove the seeds. Now add them in the mortar (or blender) along with basil, garlic and almonds cut into small pieces and two tablespoons of oil. As pounded add the other two tablespoons of oil. When you have finished pounding the ingredients, let stand the sauce, then after about twenty minutes, add salt, pepper, grated pecorino cheese. Mix well and add only a little oil on the surface.



At this point put on fire a saucepan of salted water to prepare busiate pasta. When the pasta is al dente drain it, arrange on plates and season with your pesto sauce. Before adding the sauce, dilute it with two tablespoons of cooking water.

I recommend you to combine pasta all'agghiata with a great dry white wine, which will enhance the aroma of this irresistible first dish.


Doses for 4 people:

- 500 grams/1 lb of pasta "busiate" (alternatively, you can use the spaghetti or bucatini)
- 300 grams/11 oz of tomatoes (preferably plum or Pachino quality)
- 1 tablespoon of grated pecorino
- 70 grams/3 oz of basil
- 50 grams/2 oz of almonds, shelled and peeled
- 4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1 clove of garlic (if you find the quality red, but if you do not like, you can not put it)
- salt (6 teaspoons)
- ground black pepper (2 teaspoons)

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Pasta with fried zucchini ("Pasta chi cucuzzeddi fritti")

Pasta with "cucuzzeddi fritti" is a popular dish in Sicily, probably because the zucchini are grown and grow luxuriantly throughout the island . You'll never find, in fact, a Sicilian fruit and vegetables stand that does not sell these vegetables !!!! The recipe is very simple to implement and economical. There aren't big variations, you can use either long or short pasta and season it with the Parmesan or salted ricotta cheese, as required by the original recipe.

First wash the zucchini, remove the beginning and end but not the peel, then cut into slices not too thin. Now place them in a colander and sprinkle with salt. So zucchini will eliminate their bitter taste. After about half an hour wash the slices quickly and dry them thoroughly with paper towels, to avoid dangerous splashes of oil when fry them. Meanwhile, put on fire a large non-stick pan with extra virgin olive oil and a clove of garlic, which will eliminate just golden. When the oil is hot place your zucchini and let them fry a little at a time. Remove them from the pan only when they are golden brown and place on a plate lined with paper towel to wipe the excess oil. The original recipe envisages to save the oil in which you fry the zucchini to season pasta, but if you prefer a lighter version of this dish you can use other extra virgin olive oil.

Pun on fire a pot with water and salt to cook pasta (you can use both the short pasta or that long, according to your taste). When the pasta is ready, drain and add to zucchini and oil (the oil in which you have fried zucchini ora other olive oil, as you prefer). Finally add the fresh basil, if you can find it, and grated cheese: Parmesan cheese for a milder taste, or salted ricotta, as required by tradition, for a more intense flavor .



I recommend to accompany this first course with a good dry white wine . This recipe is very simple to realize  and ideal for our vegetarian friends, but also for our vegan friends, if you do not have to use the grated cheese. In this case I recommend to add freshly ground black pepper.

Doses for 4 people:

- 500/1 lb  grams of pasta (short or long, as you prefer)
- 3 medium zucchini
- extra virgin olive oil (3/4 tablespoons)
- salt (4 teaspoons to salt zucchini; 2 tablespons for pasta)
- grated Parmesan or salted ricotta (3 teaspoons)
- fresh basil (big leaves quality)
- 1 clove of garlic
- ground black pepper (teaspoons)

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Pasta with broad beans and ricotta cheese

The pasta with broad beans and ricotta cheese is probably one of the most typical dishes of Sicily. Triumph of simplicity, this pasta is in fact prepared with two ingredients that never miss in the kitchens of the Sicilian housewives: broad beans, those small and more tender, and fresh ewe's ricotta cheese, that is used in particular in the area of Agrigento. For you to really get the delicate and refined taste that is born from the meeting of these two ingredients, I recommend you to use broad beans and ricotta, both fresh. Some recipes prescribe to fry the broad beans in a pan, but in the version that I propose  they are prepared in a pot, so as to affect as little as possible their flavor and let them tender. For the preparation of this dish you can use both of the short pasta, which that long. To you and your palate free choice.

Shell the broad beans from the pod and their interior husk. In a pot, add the shelled braod beans, the shallot cut vey thin, salt, fresh ground black pepper (1 teaspoon), oil (1 tablespoon) and 1 glass of water. Let cook for about 20 minues over a low flame. In the meantime, put on the fire the water for the pasta and cook it. Lay down the ewe's ricotta in a soup-tureen and add two spoons of cooking water to dilute the consistence of the ricotta cheese. When the pasta is ready, drain it, pour into the soup-tureen, add the broad beans and fresh ground black pepper (2 teaspoons). Mix the all for well, but with extreme care not to break the broad beans. Now bright to the table and serve it.

I suggest to accompany this dish with a very mild taste with a good white wine dry but fuit.

Doses for 4 people:

- 1 kilogram/2 lb 3 oz of fresh broad beans, small and tender
- 300 grams/ 11 oz of fresh ewe's ricotta cheese
- 400 grams/14 oz of pasta (long or short at your convenience)
- 1 shallot
- 1 tablespoon oil
- salt (for the pasta, about 2/3 tablespoons)
- fresh groun black pepper (3 teaspoons)

Pasta with sardines ("Pasta chi sardi")

Pasta with sardines ("Pasta chi sardi"), combination of strong and contrasting flavors, is one of the most famous Sicilian dishes in the World, that will surprise you for its unique and extraordinary taste. There are several versions of this recipe prepared with absolutely typical ingredients of the Sicilian territory as sweet fennel or ingredients which are entered for centuries in the island cuisine as pine nuts, imported at the time of Arab domination. Some of this recipes provide, for example, to bake pasta for few minutes before finishing the cooking, or, instead, to add tomato sauce, as is customary in the Agrigento area. I present you the version that is prepared in Palermo, where the pasta with sardines is considered one of the most traditional dishes and cooked for the feast of Santa Rosalia and St. Joseph (now called Father's Day).

First of all clean the sweet fennel, taking care to remove the toughest sprigs, rinse it quickly and put to boil in a pot with plentiful salt water for 20 minutes. Once cooked, remove the fennel from the pot but don't throw its cooking water, reserve it aside because you will need later. Dry fennel with blotting paper and cut into pieces.





Meanwhile clean the sardines. Remove heads, tails, plugs, bowels and, finally, open them in half lenghtwise. Rinse carefully them, dry with blotting paper, then, cut into small pieces (but not too small) and store. Now slice thinly the onion  and brown it in a big pan with two spoons of extravirgin oil, add the anchovy fillets and let them "melt" until they become a sort of sauce creamy. At this point add the sardines and fry everything for about 3-4 minutes.

In the frying pan add the grape passolina, the pine nuits, the sweet fennel, 4 teaspoons of salt and 2 teaspoons of fresh ground black pepper. Take care to mix this seasoning with delicacy and, if it seems necessary, add 1 tablespoon of the sweet fennel cooking water, that you have held aside. Let cook for about 15 minutes. In the meantime, put on the gas the pot with remained fennel cooking water (if it's necessary add more water) in which you will cook the bucatini. In another pan, pour 1 tablespoon of extravirgin olive oil and add the bread-crumbs, let toats it until it is golden brown, but attention not to make it burn.

When pasta will be cooked drain it well, then pour into the pan with the seasoning and mix everything gently, keeping the gas flame to a minimum. After plating  pasta, sprinkle each portion with abundant bread-crumbs and bring on the table.





I suggest you to accompany the pasta with sardines with a vintage and flavored white wine, well frozen.

Doses for four people:

- 500 grams/1 lb of bucatini pasta
- 500 grams/1 lb of sweet fennel (if you don't find it, you can use the green part of fennel but the final taste will be not the same)
- 500 grams/1 lb of fresch sarde (sarde are also known as sardines)
- 50 grams/2 oz of grape passolina (I suggest you to don't use rainsins or grape sultana because are too sweet)
- 50 grams/2 oz of pine nuts
- 3 salted anchovies
- 1 white onion
- bread-crumbs (3/4 tablespoons)
- extravirgin olive oil
- salt
- fresh ground black pepper

Maccheroni alla Norma

Maccheroni alla Norma is a traditional and all over dish of Sicilian cuisine, but Catania is strictly the place of origin. 

There are many variations of this recipe wich relate to the cheese to be used and the preparation of the sauce. 

My recipe requires the use of tomato sauce cooked with a clove of garlic and smoked ricotta cheese

Also I suggest you use large and round aubergines, not those small or elongated.

First remove the beginning and the ending of the aubergines after cut these into slices, not too thin. Then arrange in layers them in a colander and sprinkle with salt each layer. Leave like for about half an hour. After this time wash quickly and dry well the slices (this process is to eliminate aubergines bitter aftertaste). Fry slices in extravirgin olive oil until they are golden brown and, finished cooking, put them in a plate taking care to dry oil you will seem in excess with a paper towel. Now cut your slices into strips not too small and set aside.


Meanwhile pour the tomato sauce in a saucepan, add half a glass of water, a clove of garlic and basil leaves. Make cook the sauce until it will seem very substantial (it must not be liquid !!!), remove the garlic and season with salt. Almost the end of cooking  add a little oil, always extravirgin olive oil, and let cook a few minutes more. Meanwhile grate the smoked ricotta cheese.




Put a pot on the gas with water and abundant salt to cook pasta. For the cooking time of maccheroni follow the time indicated on the package. When pasta is ready, drain it well, add  the tomato sauce (taking care that it is hot), the strips oh aubergines, abundant grated ricotta cheese and, finally, basil leaves.



I suggest you combine maccheroni alla Norma with a still white, chilled, or a good red wine. This recipe is ideal for vegetarian friends which want to enjoy a genuine and tasty dish.

Doses for 4 people:

- 400 grams/14 oz  of maccheroni
- 2 big and round aubergines
- 150 grams/5 oz of grated smoked ricotta cheese
- 1 tomato sauce bottle (500 grams/1 lb 2 oz)
- 1 clove of garlic
- basil (preferable big leaves quality)
- salt and ground black pepper
- extravirgin olive oil

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Lasagne cacate

Towards Christmas, traditional Sicilian cuisine is enriched by several  recipes. I have chosen to suggest you a first course recipe to bring to the table during this holiday season. It's tipical of Modica's area, but fairly widespread in the rest of Sicily.
The original recipe calls for the use of "sugna", lard, but, if you can't find it, you can use olive oil, strictly extravirgin. Also you can use minced meat, instead to mice the meat after cooking.

Put in a saucepot a piece of meat of veal and one of pork and brown them in lard, fading all with a glass of red wine. When meat will be brown, remove it and put in the same saucepot a thin red onion chopped to fry. Now add tomato extract, diluited in a little water, put again the meat and season to taste. When meat will appear cooked, mice it and after put in the sauce, on fire off.

Meanwhile prepare the lasagne. Oil the bottom of a baking tin, place the first lasagne layer, then add ragout, fresh ricotta cheese and grated caciocavallo (kneaaded-paste cheese from Southern Italy). Continue to arrange in layers, for other 4-5 times. On the last layer abound with caciocavallo, so on lasagna will be a golden and crispy layer oh cheese.

I suggest you to combine the intense taste of this dish with a good full-bodied red wine....and Merry Christams !!!!

Doses for a baking tin (6 people):

- 1 red onion
- 100 grams/3,5 oz of grated caciocavallo (kneaaded-paste cheese from Southern Italy)
- 400 grams/1 lb of fresh ricotta
- 100 grams/3,5 oz of lard or, alternatively, extravirgin olive oil
- 1 glass of red wine
- 600 grams/1 lb 5 oz of lasagne
- 500 grams/1 lb 2 oz of meat of pork
- 500 grams/ 1 lb 2 oz of meat of vael

- 400 grams/ 1 lb of tomato extract

- salt
- fresh ground black pepper

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