Thursday, August 11, 2005

Food in Sicily

We have had some great gastronomical treats in Sicily in terms of "specialities of Sicily" - Gilmo introduced us to lots of yummy stuff.

This first treat was breakfast on our first day in Sicily - it's called Arancina and is made of breaded rice/egg and is filled with either meat/funghi/spinach/cheese and deep fried.

There are some lovely sweet treats here too - on the right is a lovely cannoli with a ricotta filling, the left is cassata, with an almond cake in the middle.

The third picture is of a Prickly Pear tree? Well I guess it is a cactus, the fruit is sweet with lots of pips (and prickles on the outside). We saw some plants being picked - rather carefully - with thick gloves.

Lemon trees are proliferous in Sicily (4th photo is of trees near Catania), and from them they make yummy stuff! First on a hot day in Sicily this 5th photo is a taste sensation - it is called Granita and is frozen lemon/sugar/water/egg white (not always with the egg white). It would be similar to what we call a slushy in NZ but is far superior and not as liquid!!!! It is heavenly . . . . .
The next lemon derivative is Lemon Gelato (served in a lemon skin) and Limoncello, which is a lemon liquer which is served chilled, it aids digestion!

The final photo is of Brioche filled with Gelato - Yum! One of these is for Sandy (honest)!

A drink that is found in some parts of Sicily is Spuma (not pictured) - this is like a mixture of something similar to iced tea and fanta, and is very refreshing.