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Flavours, Smells and Treasures of Sicila
Sicily oranges
"If you need to take a pill
that has the the same properties of an orange
just eat an orange!"
(Giordano, M., Siamo Fritti (we are done for), Mondadori, 2004)
You deal with Sicilia and you cannot miss the oranges that represent a distinctive element of that area
A long time ago amid the Mediterranean sea so much fish and many sea monsters existed to defend their own land.
Many volcanos of surrounding lands used to erupt continuously one by one. If water was not a safe world the earth wasn't certainly safer. A piece of actual Italia broke off and two islands appeared.
In one of them, closer to the centre of Mediterranean Sea two sea monsters appeared.
The man who slowly arrived and lived in those places named them Scilla (the one who tear preys) and Carhybdis (the one who swallows up).
One of the volcanos of primitive dry land lie at the border of the former and the closer island: the Sicilia island.
That volcano started to erupt like it never did before, the earth started to tremble endlessly. The lava that came out covered the burrows of both monsters and killed them by privations.
Some thousand years after, as the earthquake stopped and life became easier the first life forms started to grow around the volcano called Etna and even over the lava hills that covered the burrow of Scylla.
The first flowers of that area were white and perfumed, hanging by the trees with with nice fruits once golden coloured and then red coloured.
The man taste one of it, juicy, tender, with a light or bright red colour and soon that fruit became his main food.
Thus the orange fruit became the symbol fruit of Scylla...or Sicilia island.
As you can realize by reading that tale, fruit of fantasy, no product other than the culture of oranges has made Sicilia's agriculture famous. That is a production that entered so radically to be part of the tradition of the island and which many feasts and anniverasries are dedicated to.
For further widenings about orange from Sicilia please surf throughout "Typical Products" section inside the route menu
The flowered almond tree sagra
Every year, between the first and the second weekend of february Agrigento is at the centre of the world thanks to the Flowered Almond tree Sagra and the Folk International Festival linked to that.
Myths and popular traditions melt in a great event of international interest where symbolically all the people in the earth gather in the name of the peace to celebrate the Spring advanced beginning that shows itself in the magic blossoming of almond flowers that make the Temples Valley so impressive.
The origins of Almond tree are to be searched in Cenetral Asia and is one of the few species to flower in wintertime by covering plains and hills with candid petals.
In Noto Valley, among the provinces of Siracusa and Ragusa, t found its suitable habitat by producing many species of almonds of such a prestige (Pizzuta, Fascionello, Romana) to become a brandmark knwon all over the world, the "Avola Almond".
Its cooking use
The almonds are an ingredient so much used in different traditions either in sweet or salted recipes.
They are picked by hand in april and may months or in june-july and they are used for sugar coated comfit, biscuits, puff pastry, marzipan.
They are even widely used in cosmetic industry that applies almond oil as a base for creams and compresses.
For further widenings about Sicila Almond please surf throughout the "Typical products" section inside the route menu.
Etna's emerald: the Pistach from Bronte
Bronte is asmall village at the slope of Etna volcano and is the only place, all over Italy, where you can see to the plantations of pistach that otherwise you should find out in Grecce and Turkland.
A Cooperative that draws its name by the colour of the concerning fruit )emerald green), manages the harvests and the sale on site. The exclusive presence of the pistach in Bronte (above all its survival during the ages) is supposed to be due to the particular climate between the moisture of Simeto river and the fertilizing ashes of "giant" Etna.
For further widenings about orange from Sicilia please surf throughout "Typical Products" section inside the route menu
The Indian Fig
The original land of that species is Mexico. It seems to have been brought to Europe by Saracens in 827 or by Cristoforo Colombo while coming back from Americas.
In Sicily the presence of that species is dated of 17th century; formerly in that island was tilled as a decorating species and further as a fruit plant.
Its growing so intensive and specialized is dated of the early 70s of last century, that is the date in which it was spread over, particularly in the Etna area (S.Cono) and in the corresponding area of Santa Margherita Belice Commune.
In the past it served to feed poor people and as a food for some species of animals, such as goat gender; it was let to grow along the borders to limit an estate and along the cliffs to avoid earth slipping.
The Indiand Fig got accustomed in the hot areas of Mediterranean Basin, where it grows both as tilled and spontaneously. It is resistant to high temperatures and dryness, it grows in poor earths.
It is part of the Sicilian Agricultural culture; it is one of the most known symbols of the island and it represent an exotic look of that land, spread spontaneously over the natural landscape.
In the province of Agrigento the surface interested by that species is nearly 400 hectares wide as a specialized tilling and 200 hectare wide as a secondary tilling;
that surface results to be concentrated mainly in the Santa Margherita Belice area and surrounding area particularly in Menfi.
Besides of fresh product that fruit is used to make icecreams, cakes, juices and liqueurs.
For further widenings about orange from Sicilia please surf throughout "Typical Products" section inside the route menu
