Sicilian Recipes

Over the last three thousand or so years Sicily has been continuously occupied for varying periods of time by peoples from many different cultures. Each group subsequently displaced by the armies of the next group. Along with their armies, many of these people brought with them their own plants and livestock. Transplanted in the fertile volcanic soil of Sicily, these imported plants and animals flourished. While in some cases they created unexpected problems, they were usually beneficial and resulted in enriching the Sicilian cuisine.

Sicilian cuisine encompasses the foods that make up the Mediterranean pyramid and includes a rich variety of locally available foods. On the following pages you'll find the recipes and a glossary of terms. The one word source for most of the recipes is identified in this list.

Alice

Alice's recipes include some that came from Mamma Rosalia as well as some that came from Aunt Tina and from Anna in Caltagirone.

Arba-1

Arba Sicula, vol XVI, numbers 1&2, Spring & Fall 1995, p150, Florence Russo.

Arba-2

Arba Sicula, vol XVII, numbers 1&2, Spring & Fall 1996, p123, Vincent Schiavelli.

Bruno, Nunzio

Corrado Di Pietro vi invito Alla Tavola Di Nunzio Bruno con La Cucina Popolare Siciliana, Venila Editrice, Montemerlo PD, Italy, 1994.

Penza, John and Corsi, Tony

Sicilian-American Pasta: 99 Recipes You Can't Refuse, Ten Speed Press, Berkeley, CA, 1994.

Tina

There are many excellent, creative cooks in our family but Tina is still the best of the best, which proves that you don't have to be Sicilian to be the best.

Tornabene, Wanda and Giovanna

The Sicilian Guisine of Gangivecchio, Alfred A. knopf, New York, 1996.

Wright, Clifford A.,

Cucina Paradiso: the heavenly food of Sicily, Simon & Schuster, New York, 1992.