La Dolce Vita: A Dessert Tour of Sicily

La Dolce Vita: A Dessert Tour of Sicily

From cannoli and cassata to almond granita and pistachio gelato, I ate my way through Palermo, Bronte and Modica on a dessert road trip across the island of Sicily.

I can’t quite point out the moment I fell in love with Sicily. Perhaps it was the first time I ordered gelato for breakfast – and no one batted an eye. Or maybe it was when I went back for my third iris fritta – in a row – and nobody cared. In Sicily, dessert is a way of life, calories don’t count and a sweet tooth like mine feels right at home.

With its rugged mountains that tumble into a blue sea, Sicily looks like home too. Its warm Mediterranean ocean has over centuries brought with it wave after wave of conquerors. Each new conquering nation – and there have been many – left traces of their cuisine, language and culture which vary quite drastically as you travel from town to town. 

 

PALERMO

I watched the rocky seaside gradually turn into intricate Arabic architecture through the window of my rental car as I drove from Palermo airport into the capital city.  Sicily is the perfect road trip destination – it takes just 4 hours to drive from one side to the other side of the island. While most people head straight for Palermo’s markets and street food, this was not that kind of road trip – and I had a cannoli craving to satisfy!

Cannoli are found all over Sicily, but I think the ones from Palermo are the best. The crispy blistered shell is thanks to the addition of the nearby Marsala wine and has a bitterness which perfectly counteracts the smooth, sweetened ricotta filling made from sheep’s milk. 

(Side note: if you want to make your own, I’ve got a killer recipe here)

There’s a pretty easy way to know which ones are worth the calories: a really great cannolo is always filled to order so the shell stays crisp and crunchy. You’ll also find modern riffs on the classic with interesting flavour variations but my favourite, from Gelato & Cioccolato, is stuffed with scoops of ricotta and pistachio gelato.

Next on my list was what has been described by Sicily’s most famous pastry chef Corrado Assenza as ‘the most elegant expression of Sicilian culture’, the cassata.  Layer by layer, the cassata symbolizes over a thousand years of Sicilian history. The sugar cane, the almond, the lemons and oranges were brought here by 9th-century Arab invaders. The pan di spagna (sponge cake) is from the Spanish, the white fondente icing from the French. The marzipan is dyed green in homage to the days when bakers could afford to use pistachio paste, from those famous nut trees that flourish in the nearby village of Bronte.

I choose a cassatine (the miniature version) from the pastry counter of Pasticceria Capello. I find a bench overlooking the Piazza Ruggiero Settimo and tuck into my pretty little cake with a plastic fork. As cathedral bells clang, I marvel at the ornate Arabic influence of Palermo’s skyline and how that design is echoed in the beautiful piping on the dessert I’m devouring. Licking my fork clean, I’m already thinking about my next treat. 

I leave Palermo in my rearview mirror and head to Alta Villa Millacia. September is the month of Madonna in Sicily and throughout the month you’ll find small towns celebrating the saint with spectacular processions, street food, nut roasting, sweet making and festivities.

The scent of vanilla and caramel on the hot summer air lured me from my itinerary to explore the festivities. The closed street was lined with pastry chefs armed with giant swords and marble slabs – each lifting and moulding the hot sugar and almond mixture into perfect bricks of torrone. 

I wound my way along the shimmering Sicilian coastline with the rocks tumbling into the sea and the thick heat miraging on the horizon. It was gelato time. A short 20-minute drive from Alta Villa Millacia along a marina with docked fishing boats is Gelateria Cicciuzzu.

The legend of Francesco Amoroso is a famous one and I read the story of the gelateria owner from a newspaper clipping pinned to the wall while licking my chocolate cherry gelato. In 1955 he set up a small boat and sailed along the coast of Termini Imerese selling ice cream to those swimming in the warm sea.  I wish I could’ve been one of those bathers! 

 

BRONTE

If the gigantic pistachio I passed along the way didn’t give me a clue that I had arrived in Bronte, I would never have known that the tangled mass of trees I passed along the way, were, in fact, of the pistachio kind. I pulled over to the first cafe I could find  – Bar Collina Verde, and had the best pistachio granite of my life while waiting for Nicolo Pace.

At 22 years old, he’s the younger generation of pistachio farmers in Bronte who are inheriting plantations from their fathers. He tells me that he is studying Food Science and Technology in order to improve innovation in pistachio farming in this area. “Bronte pistachios are the finest and most expensive in the world because we only harvest every 2 years. It takes patience but the quality is the most important thing to us. Real Bronte pistachios have PDOP (Product Designation of Origin) – they are bigger, saltier and have darker skin than any other pistachios.”

As I fire a million questions at him on what are called ‘emeralds’ around these parts we whizz along an alarmingly bumpy, steep road in Nicolo’s car before arriving at his modest family farm.

A quint little house on a floor of lava rocks (we’re in Mount Etna land, after all) is surrounded by the same tangled mass of trees sprouting straight out of the hard black stones.

We trek across the hot rocks (‘mind the vipers, he tosses casually over his shoulder’!) until he excitedly points to a branch laden with bright red drupes.

As the drupe (fruit) ripens, it splits open to reveal the seed (not nut) inside. The drupes have to be hand collected and dried in the sun before the pistachios can be sold.

Harvesting is hard work and Nicolo rewards me with a lunch of ice cold prickly pears. I leave with a bag full of Bronte’s finest green gold – the best kind of padkos!

PITSTOP:  Pasticceria Dolce Bacio

What to order: The arancini (not arancine as they are known in Parlermo) which are shaped like the nearby Mount Etna. 

 

MODICA

I had a 2-hour drive along the Eastern coastline of Sicily to reach the World Unesco Heritage Site of Modica. It was also the amount of time I had to think about what to ask a 6th generation chocolate maker. Pierpaolo Ruta is as intense as the chocolate he makes at Antica Dolceria Bonajuto, the oldest chocolate and pastry shop in Sicily. Described as ‘a different kind of chocolate’ Pierpaolo and his family were the creators of the granular chocolate that has made Modica famous worldwide.

So why is chocolate so famous in a city without cocoa trees? It’s all thanks to the Spanish who left behind their language, baroque architecture and their obsession with chocolate. “Until 1960, my grandfather made Modica chocolate from cocoa mass using a stone metate by hand. The sugar crystals remain intact inside the chocolate giving it a very special granular structure and texture.” 

Pierpaolo and his family have always had an open-door policy when it comes to showing how their unique chocolate is made and you can take a tour of their chocolate lab on the hour (which I did). It’s because of this that Modica is now filled with copycat artisans claiming they make the ‘original Modica chocolate’. But Pierpaolo humbly shrugs it off and excitedly tells me his plans for a new factory next door that will make them a full bean to bar chocolate brand.

‘Making our chocolate from scratch is a controversial step because technically Modica chocolate is known to be made from pre-made cocoa mass. But I want to make sure we keep innovating. I want to leave a legacy to my son just like my father and his father did for me.’ I leave with a small satin bag filled with Pierpaolo’s latest invention; jasmine-infused Modica chocolate drops, and a box of the pastry shop’s Mpanatigghi and Nucatoli biscuits ( a speciality of Modica).

I reach Dolceria Donna Elvira flustered, and out of breath. As probably the most well-known Modica chocolate brand in the world, Google maps still got me terribly lost. 

But all is forgotten as I’m ushered through the door by Elvira Roccasalva (THE ‘donna’).  She plies me with her favourite 100% chocolate bar. ‘This will make you feel better,’ she says. It’s an intense savoury block with a rough texture. I can feel the cocoa high kicking in.

When Elvira started the dolceria back in 1999 she admits she had no experience in desserts or making chocolate. ‘I learnt with practice and research, visiting cocoa farms in Peru and tasting a lot of cocoa beans. It was always my dream to make our bars from scratch’ she tells me as we walk through her factory where logs of homemade marzipan are being rolled by hand. That came true 3 years ago when Donna Elvira became a full bean to bar Modica chocolate brand – the first in Sicily. 

‘As a woman in a male-dominated small town industry like Modica, it wasn’t easy. In the beginning, nobody took me seriously but I focused on sourcing incredibly rare cocoa beans and making sure that Donna Elvira became synonymous with Modica chocolate.’ Countless awards later and I’d say Elvira has succeeded. 

PITSTOP:  Gelateria Fiore

The best gelato in town is scooped over at Gelateria Fiore where they only churn seasonal flavours. My broken Italian helped score me tasters of everything – from prickly pear to watermelon and peach. I went back the next morning for an espresso granita topped with whipped cream – a quintessential summer Italian breakfast – before hitting the road again. 

What to order: any of their seasonal gelato flavours served in a brioche bun. When asked if you want ‘crema?’ the answer should always be ‘si!’.

 

TRAPANI

My sweet tooth is taking a beating so when I whizz past the salt flats in Trapani with mountains of flakes raked up on the side of the road, I breathe in the salty air and feel a renewed sense of excitement at my next stop. And Vita Alotta is a worthy pitstop.

A quaint little shop hidden in the maze of central Trapani, Vito has quietly been making Sicily’s very first craft chocolate, not too far from Modica. ‘It’s been difficult for locals to understand what makes my chocolate so special. They only understand Modica chocolate or the imported stuff. The craft chocolate movement is very well known in the rest of Europe and in America, but not here in Sicily. I think I am probably the first,’ he tells me.

Vito’s chocolate bars all hero single origin cocoa beans and feature ingredients so famous in this region; Trapani salt and Sicilian saffron. 

 

SAN VITO LO CAPO

Most travellers head to San Vito Lo Capo to lie on the breathtaking beach and enjoy its aqua water but since this was my last stop on what was a 7-day dessert eating spree, I was pretty sure fitting into my bikini was not going to happen. So I drowned my sorrows at Laboratori Dolci Siciliani (Pasticceria Peralta).

Their almond granite is made from hand-ground almonds from a farm nearby and is so good I have 3 in a row. But I secretly go back to swoon at their window display of impeccable Frutta Martorana – Sicily’s most famous sweet. Fruits are realistically moulded from almond paste by hand to show off the skills of the pastry chef.

Vito, the owner, tells me that they were invented in the 12th century by the nuns of La Martorana, a church in Palermo. As the story goes, the nuns originally decided to sculpt fruits from marzipan and hang them from their empty trees to impress the visiting archbishop. He was so impressed they kept making them. It’s a fading art which won’t die under my watch! I leave with an entire box. 

As I walked on the beach of San Vito Lo Capo, with the warm sea lapping my feet, licking what was to be my final gelato of fragole and limone, I thought about the talented people I’d met along the way. Sicilians are most famously known for the mafia and Godfather movies, but what they should be famous for, is their warmth and hospitality. In a land known for its history and tradition, I experienced a growing innovation. And a younger generation craving to preserve traditions but at the same time create their own. I couldn’t wait to taste that on my next trip, but first I needed to hit the gym! 

 

Sicilian Cannoli with Homemade Ricotta

Sicilian Cannoli with Homemade Ricotta

Ah, cannoli. How your deep-fried pastry flecked with crispy bubbles and stuffed with fluffy ricotta has stolen my heart forever. Oh, I had seen you from a distance, in pictures, of course, and admired your soft dusting of snowy icing sugar, and imagined the crunch of your pastry crumbling into the smooth creamy filling, but never did I realize just what I was missing out on. Silly of me really, considering that all things deep-fried and stuffed with cheese are delicious. That’s a given.

As you may have noticed recently, my blog posts have had a decidedly Italian twist to them which may or may not have something to do with an Italian man in my life. While I have yet to school him in South African malva poeding, koeksisters and melktert, mostly because I don’t have time, he has not-so-subtly been teaching me the art of Sicilian cooking. Probably so I can cook for him. Sneaky I tell you! Italian’s are fiercely proud of their regional specialities and Siciliy is known for, among other things, their cannoli where the pastry was invented. The first thing I learnt about this delicacy is: two cannoli, one cannolo. Get it right. The name means ‘little tube’ which not surprisingly refers to it’s shape. But, wait, it gets more complicated because different sizes have different names. Some are small and no bigger than a finger while others (like the cannoli from Palermo) are as big as a hand.

Proper Sicilian cannoli, I’m told, is always made with homemade ricotta cheese made from sheep’s milk. But because you won’t catch me milking a sheep in a million years, cow’s milk will do (and no I didn’t milk that myself either). The trick to a deliciously creamy filling (one that doesn’t make the cannoli shells go soggy too quickly), is to make the ricotta a few days beforehand and hang it in muslin cloth to get rid of as much moisture as possible. (I know, I know, I hear you, ‘a few days’ is a pain, but we’re talking traditional here. If you want to cut the corner, then do so, just don’t tell an Italian you did.)

Homemade Ricotta Cheese

 

1 litre full cream milk

1/2 tsp salt

3 tbsp fresh lemon juice

 

Slowly bring milk and salt to a rolling boil in a large saucepan. Add lemon juice and stir constantly over low heat until the mixture curdles. Carefully scoop out the curds using a sieve or fine slotted spoon. Pour the remaining mixture into a sieve lined with muslin cloth and let it drain for 2-3 days in the refrigerator. Discard the liquid.

Now for the best part, the cannoli! I would suggest making these on a weekend, and definitely invite a group of friends over because you’ll want the “oooh’s and aaah’s” as a reward for your hard work. Unless, of course, the heavenly taste of the cannoli is enough, then by all means curl up on the couch with the whole batch and devour them. Just be sure to have a glass of red wine afterwards, because as Italian tells me, that’s the secret to staying slim (and I’m not about to argue with that logic!)

Cannoli

Makes 25-30

 

300g cake flour

30g butter, softened

15g The Kate Tin Cocoa Powder

1 tsp ground coffee

1 tbsp sugar

pinch of salt

1 glass white wine or marsala

1 egg white, for brushing

oil, for deep-frying

 

Filling

500g ricotta cheese

500ml milk

1 bay leaf

2 cloves

1 stick cinnamon

40g cornstarch

125g castor sugar

3/4 cup The Kate Tin Dark Baking Chocolate Chips or The Kate Tin Dark Baking Chocolate, chopped 

1 tsp ground cinnamon

 

Candied orange rind, to decorate

Icing sugar, to dust

 

Combine the flour, butter, cocoa, coffee sugar and salt then gradually add the white wine or marsala until a stiff pliable dough forms (the dough should be a similar consistency to pasta dough). Knead the dough until smooth and elastic then cover and rest for 10 minutes. Slice off pieces of dough and roll through a floured pasta machine starting at the largest setting and working your way through the notches until your each size 4 thickness. Cut out circles of dough using a cookie cutter or cup then wrap around a cannoli mould or wooden stick. Overlap the edges and stick them together with a little egg white. Continue until all the dough has been used up. Heat the oil to 180 degrees celcius and deep-fry the cannoli, in batches, until deep-golden brown. Drain on paper towel and allow to cool.

Now for the filling: Heat the milk gently with the bay leaf, cloves and cinnamon until just simmering. Add a little water to the cornstarch to make a thin paste then gradually whisk the paste into the warm milk, whisking continuously until thick. Add the sugar. Simmer for a few minutes until cooked before spreading on a baking tray to cool. Pass the ricotta cheese through a fine sieve to get a smooth mixture. Mix in the cooled white sauce (remove the spices) and stir well. Add the chocolate chips and cinnamon powder. Place the filling into a piping bag and pipe into each cannoli. Dust with icing sugar and decorate with candied orange rind, if desired. Serve immediately.

TIP  The cannoli shells can be stored for up to a month in an airtight container. To get them super crispy again, pop the shells into the oven for a few minutes. The ricotta filling can be frozen – simply freeze the mixture in a ziplock bag.