Sicilian cuisine has close ties both with the historical and cultural events and the religious and spiritual life of the island. It is a complex and intricate regional gastronomical culture that bears the traces and contributions of all the cultures that have settled in Sicily over the last two thousand years.
Sicilian cuisine is rich in vegetables, the ingredients of famous dishes such as eggplant Caponata or sweet-and-sour fritters. Fish is traditionally a staple food on Sicilian tables. The most commonly used salt is sea salt and dishes are exalted with herbs that grow abundantly across the island: basil, parsley, mint, bay, oregano, rosemary, sage, wild onions, fennel seeds and wild fennel as well as jasmine, pine seeds, raisins, toasted bread crumbs, orange peels, lemon juice, etc.
Capers, garlic and onions are also favorite ingredients used in preparing dishes. The heart of any meal is pasta or a dish of legumes (fresh fava or dried fava beans, lentils, emmer, chickpeas).
Pastries and sweets – fried, baked or spoon desserts – are a world of their own. Fruit and dried nuts are the favorite ingredients, but the ingredient par excellence is sweetened sheep or goat ricotta. It is used for Sicily’s most typical sweets: Cassata and Cannoli.
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