Let’s go back to talking about Christmas desserts, this time examining the Sicilian confectionery tradition, among the richest in the country, the result of centuries of contamination and reworking. Buccellato is perhaps the most famous, but the island’s Christmas pastry offers much more. Crispy nougat, biscuits filled with dried fruit and monumental cassata, all recipes that carry with them the memory of past dominations, from the Saracens to the Spanish, and which have left indelible traces in the way of making desserts.
The Sicilian nougat
Sicilian nougat has its roots in Arab domination, when Muslim master pastry chefs introduced the art of working honey, almonds and sugar to the island. Unlike the soft nougat typical of other Italian regions, the Sicilian one is hard and crunchy, with a consistency that requires patience in chewing.
Ingredients:
Procedure:
Start by toasting the almonds in the oven at 160 degrees for ten minutes, then let them cool. Whip the egg whites until stiff with an electric whisk. In a saucepan with a thick bottom, heat honey and sugar over medium heat, stir continuously with a wooden spoon until it reaches 150 degrees, then add the whipped egg whites to the boiling mixture, work vigorously to mix well, add the toasted almonds and grated lemon zest. Mix quickly and pour the mixture onto a wafer sheet placed on baking paper. Cover with a second sheet of wafer and press with a rolling pin to obtain a uniform thickness of about two centimeters. Allow to cool completely to room temperature, then cut into diamonds or rectangles with a sharp knife.
Nucatoli
Nucatoli represent one of the most genuine symbols of Sicilian Christmas, filled biscuits that take their name from walnuts, the main ingredient of the filling together with almonds, honey and dried figs. The traditional shape resembles a crescent, although each Sicilian family has developed personal variations over time, from the “S” to the stylized flower.
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Ingredients for the pastry:
Ingredients for the filling:
For the icing:
Procedure:
Prepare the pastry by mixing flour, lard, sugar, eggs and cinnamon, then knead until you obtain a homogeneous mixture, form a ball and wrap it in transparent film, and leave to rest in the refrigerator for at least an hour. In the meantime, take care of the filling: soak the dried figs in warm water for twenty minutes, then squeeze them and chop them finely together with the almonds, walnuts and candied fruit. Add the honey, cinnamon and ground cloves and mix well. Take the pastry out of the fridge, roll it out with a rolling pin to a thickness of half a centimeter and cut it into strips about eight centimeters wide. Place a cord of filling in the center of each strip, close into a crescent shape and seal the edges by pressing with the tines of a fork. Bake at 180 degrees for twenty minutes. Prepare the icing by whipping the egg white with the icing sugar, brush the biscuits while they are still warm and decorate them with the colored sprinkles.
The Sicilian cassata
The Sicilian cassata worthily concludes any self-respecting Christmas lunch. This monumental dessert was born in the convents of Palermo during the Arab domination, when the nuns began to work sheep’s ricotta with sugar and candied fruit. The modern version, with bright green icing and baroque decorations, dates back to the Spanish period.
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Ingredients:
For the royal icing:
Procedure:
Pass the ricotta through a sieve to remove any graininess, then mix it with the icing sugar, the coarsely chopped chocolate chips, the diced candied fruit and the chopped pistachios. Cut the sponge cake into thin slices and lightly moisten them with the alchermes diluted in a little water. Line a cassata mold with slices of sponge cake, pour in the ricotta mixture and level the surface well. Close with other slices of wet sponge cake and place in the refrigerator for at least twelve hours. The next day, turn out the cassata onto a serving plate. Prepare the royal icing by whipping the egg whites with the icing sugar and lemon juice until you obtain a thick cream. Cover the cassata completely with the icing using a spatula. Decorate with strips of green royal pasta arranged in a radial pattern from the center towards the edges, alternate pieces of candied fruit and complete with a candied cherry in the centre.
Merry Christmas and bon appetit!
