Parmigiana di melanzane e caponata
Eggplants are very used in the Sicilian recipes and among the best known recipes you can enjoy an excellent eggplant parmigiana. The eggplants are fried and then arranged in layers in a baking dish, alternating with tomato sauce, breadcrumbs, hard-boiled eggs, cheese. A rich and nutritious dish, which tradition says to eat after a couple of hours from cooking to let the flavors come together.
Another recipe with eggplants is caponata. Made with fried eggplants, olives, capers, celery, tomato sauce, and a sweet and sour sauce. This dish is eaten cold. Both dishes are widely used in summer because the eggplants’ season is from May to September.
Eggplant parmigiana photo burrofuso
Mitilugghia
The Mitilugghia is an appetizer coming from the district of Ragusa. It is a focaccia bread that can be prepared both sweet and savory. The dough is very simple and is made with flour and olive oil, and after the leavening small focaccias are prepared to be fried in hot oil. It’s a simple dish with ancient origins that today is eaten even plain or stuffed in a thousand ways, with anchovies, onions, salami and cheeses. Mitilugghia has also a festival with the same name, in the town of Acate.
Cuccureddi e mustata
The cuccureddi and the mustata are desserts tied to the grape harvest tradition, made with the must. They are prepared in September and were traditionally used to celebrate the end of the harvest. The Mustata or mustard, is made with cooked must, thickened with flour, garnished with almonds and flavored with cinnamon and vanilla. The compound starts to dry in the molds to create delicious treats! The cuccureddi instead are made with a dough made of flour and water to create small lasagne that intertwine, are boiled in water and then the cooking is finished in boiling must, then are sprinkled with almonds and left to dry.
Frost of melon photo lagustona
Gelo di melone
The frost of melon or frost of watermelon is a typical dessert prepared on August 15th. It is prepared with cooked watermelon juice thickened with cornstarch. It is cooled for a few hours and then you get a simple but tasty jelly, perfect for summer. There are many variations which involve the use of cinnamon, or candied fruits, almonds or chocolate chips to create each time different flavors and aromas. This simple and ancient dessert is a delicious and elegant dessert today! Its melon jelly name can be misleading, because in Sicilian dialect “muluni” means watermelon. The same system will get frost orange, tangerine or frost cinnamon. All fresh and healthy desserts for hot summer days!
