Saint Joseph's Day and the traditional "Sfinci" - The video

Do you know what Sicilians eat on Saint Joseph's Day, the 19th of March? The traditional dessert that we prepare is called "Sfinci di San Giuseppe" and they are soft fried puffs with ricotta cream. According to history were the Arabs that introduced the sfinci here, they were initially covered in honey and afterwards replaced with ricotta cream. The name probably comes from isfang which means soft fritters.


A special thanks to the Pasticceria Amato, (via Favara 14/16), just in front of the Massimo Theatre in Palermo and in particular to Antonio Amato and Mr. Pino Amato that showed us how they still prepare these memorable sweets for the festivity.
Have a look at the recipe and the video. I am sure you'll enjoy!!!

For the dough: 250 gr flour 00 - 1/2 lt water - 62 gr lard - 3,5 gr salt - 7-8 eggs (medium size/60 gr. each) - ricotta cream - candied oranges and cherries - vegetable oil or lard to fry
For the ricotta cream: 500 gr sheep fresh ricotta cheese - 300 gr sugar - 80 gr dark chocolate

1. Sift the flour and add the salt
2. Put the water and the lard together in a  sauce pan on a medium heat and let them glue together. Just before boiling remove from gas and mix gently with the flour stirring the whole mix with a wooden spoon. The mix has to be extremely smooth.
3. Transfer now the mix in a blender and add one egg after another until stiffness is very creamy and soft.
4. Put some vegetable oil or lard in a deep pan and wait until very hot. Then, take a spoon of dough and dip them in the oil. Fry until they puff and become golden brown. Remove from oil and try to drain them on some paper.
5. After few minutes with a spatula or a knife and spread some ricotta cheese on top.
6. Decorate the sfince with a thin slice od candied orange and a cherry.
For the ricotta cream:
The sheep ricotta cheese must be very fresh and not too liquid. Mix the ricotta with the sugar. Stir until it turns very creamy, then add some dark chocolate chopped in small pieces.

Homemade fig jam and walnuts, the sweetest pie you have ever had

Do you know how to make a fig jam and walnuts pie? This delicious dessert is not traditional in the way that you find it in local bakeries here, but it was a tradition in my family.

My mom loved to prepare it when we were little, usually after summer, when the fig jam was fresh and ready to be used. 

I recall in particular one nice episode: I was about 16 years old and I had 2 class mates coming home for the afternoon. We had organized to watch "Dirty Dancing" for the first time and we were so excited!!!


My mum didn't tell me anything about the pie, she just took it out after the movie for our afternoon snack and we all loved it!

Ingredients & preparation:
2 & 1/2 cups of all purpose flour (250 gr.), plus extra for rolling - 1 & 1/2 cup unsalted butter (150 gr.) - 3/4 cup sugar (100 gr.) - 1 egg - 1 teaspoon salt - lemon zest - walnuts - fig jam (homemade or from the shop)


In a bowl mix the sugar with the egg, the butter and the salt. Slowly add the flour and finally the lemon zest. Knead the dough until smooth, wrap it in plastic and place it in the fridge for about an hour.

After that roll out the pastry, not too thin (about 12 to 14 inches), then put it in a pie pan, pressing gently bottom and sides to give it the right shape. Now you can add a thin layer of fig jam and finally the walnuts.


Bake it in the oven for 30 minutes at 180°degree (in fahrenheit should be 356*). Serve still warm with a lovely cup of tea.


I like the combination between the soft fig jam flavour and the crunchy walnuts and the crust. I suggest you try it. It will definetely sweeten your afternoon. Enjoy!

The Festivity of the Epiphany: the Wisemen, the sweets and the "Befana"

Hello everybody, I have been thinking a great deal about an ipothetical blog about Sicilian Food and I finally decided to give it a try!

And why not starting with the New Year? Do you know what the Epiphany is all about? Today we celebrate the Epiphany and the Three Wisemen bringing presents to Baby Jesus.

Children normally find, as they wake up, one of their socks full of candies and chocolates. Infact, as the tradition wants, the Wisemen, but also the "Befana" (an Old Hag similar to a witch here on the left) gives sweet to the good children and coal to the bad ones.

I remember when I was little, how much I liked that, waking up and rushing to the living room to find my socks full of nice sweet things. Good old days!

So, enjoy the Epiphany, remember the historical moment but also don't forget to try to be good every single day of the year! :)))