Sicilia Archives - All Around Italia

Erice

S P — Wed, 14 Jul 2021 15:44:05 +0000

How does it feel to walk amongst the clouds? In Erice, you can find out!

While visiting Trapani, the western province of Sicily, I took the cable car to the mountaintop town of Erice. Journeying up the 750 meters, I remember getting chills … and not because the temperature was dropping! I could just feel that I was heading somewhere special.

Stepping off the cable car, clouds playfully swirled around me, giving everything a magical and surreal hue. As I began to walk around, I was surprised that I could not move easily. My sandals kept slipping! The cobblestones were worn and slick. Clearly, this was a place where many had passed.

Initially inhabited by an ancient population known as Elymians, Erice then became home to various groups throughout history: Arabs, Normans, Romans, Byzantines, and more. The incredible vantage point (all the way to Tunisia on a clear day) made it popular amongst conquering peoples.

Every culture who passed through Erice left traces.

Walls surround the medieval town. Dozens of interesting churches are scattered about. There are towers and castles, the most famous being the Castello di Venere or the Castle of Venus. The Castle is constructed on the site of an ancient temple dedicated to Venus Ericina, the goddess of fertility. As the protector of navigators of the sea, Venus Ericina watched over ships from the perfect vantage point of Mount Erice.

In addition to being a great place for exploration, Erice is also a perfect place to reflect and think. I stood at the Castello di Venere for a good hour to take in the stunning view, the sensation of being amongst the clouds, and all the history in my midst.

Even though Erice feels like another world, a rumbling tummy will bring you back to reality - the reality of being in Sicily, the best place to be when you’re hungry!

Erice is most famous for its sweet treats. The town is home to one of the island’s most famous pastry shops – La Pasticceria di Maria Grammatico. There you can find marzipan or ricotta based sweets. Also worth noting are the Genovesi di Erice, fluffy short-bread treats filled with pastry cream.

On the ride down from Erice, I had a wonderful sensation. No more chills, just pure satisfaction! Full of sugar and still in awe of all I had seen, I felt so fortunate to have visited such a peaceful and fascinating place.

Italian Vocabulary related to Erice

All Around Italia helps you learn about Italy and also learn Italian! Here are some words related to Erice. Have you heard these before?

la funivia – cable car; another way to say this is il funicolare

Per arrivare ad Erice, si prende la funivia da Trapani. / To get to Erice, you take the cable car from Trapani.

scivolare – to slip and slide

Ad Erice, si scivola sulle strade acciottolate. / In Erice, you can slip on the cobblestone streets.

lo strapiombo – cliff

Il Castello di Venere si trova su uno strapiombo nel paesino di Erice. / Venus’ Castle is located on a cliff in the town of Erice.

Listen to "A Erice" by Jaka

Bring Italian into your everyday life by listening to the song "A Erice".

To listen to a fun song about Erice by Jaka – a reggae singer from Erice – check out “A Erice” on Youtube or Spotify.

The song is in local dialect. To help you better understand the chorus, you can find the translation into standard Italian below.

For more songs about Sicily, check out our Sicilia Spotify playlist.

Enjoy!

A Erice – to Erice

Acchianamo a Erice – let’s go to Erice

A Erice – to Erice

Acchianamo a Erice – let’s go to Erice

A Erice – to Erice

Acchianamo a Erice – let’s go to Erice

A Erice unni l’aria è cchiu pura – in Erice, the air is purer

A Erice nmezzo a natura – Erice in the middle of nature

The post Erice appeared first on All Around Italia.

Granita Siciliana

S P — Mon, 28 Jun 2021 17:02:16 +0000

Never heard of granita?

As a huge fan, I could not be happier to introduce you!

Technically, granita is semi-frozen treat made with ice, sugar, and a flavor – usually fruit or nuts. You may be thinking … so, it’s sorbet … or Italian ice? Nope … it’s different!

Granita is frozen using a different technique than sorbet and Italian ice, which results in it having less air and coarser ice granules. Instead of being creamy and smooth, granita is more beverage-like and sometimes slightly crunchy.

Like a snow cone or a slushie? No, no … Snow cones and slushies make me think of flavored syrups, bright colors, and convenience stores. Granita – on the other hand – is all about quality and age-old techniques.

The origins of granita go all the way back to the 800s when the Arabs occupied Sicily.

The Arabs shared their technique for making sherbet, and Sicilians used this knowledge to create their own type of chilly treat.

During the winters, men called nivaroli would go up the mountains of Sicily to collect snow and conserve it for months in holes in the ground. By the 1500s, they were using this snow to produce a granita similar to the one being made and enjoyed today.

In Sicily, each province has its own spin on granita. The most popular flavors, however, are fairly universal as they are derived from the island’s natural treasures including pistacchio, almond, lemon, mulberry, and strawberry.

Most commonly, granita is enjoyed in the summer at breakfast time.

It is often served with whipped cream – and alongside a brioscia col tuppo – an unfilled Sicilian pastry that is perfect for dipping! (Important side note … If you like brioscia – which I think is pretty impossible not to like – you can also order a brioscia con gelato at a gelateria – like a gelato sandwich!)

My favorite thing about granita may just be that you can find it any time of day, not only for breakfast. So, if you’re in Sicily during the summer, why not start and end each day with it? (At least that’s what I do!)

Italian Vocabulary related to Granita

All Around Italia helps you learn about Italy and also learn Italian! Here are some words related to granita. Have you heard these before?

semi-congelato – semi-frozen

La granita è un dolce semi-congelato. / Granita is a semi-frozen sweet treat.

la mandorla – almond

Mandorla è il mio gusto preferito di granita. / Almond is my favorite flavor of granita.

il gelso – mulberry

La granita al gelso è anche molto buona. / Mulberry granita is also very good.

Recipe - Make Granita al limone

Bring Italy into your everyday life by making (and eating!) granita al limone.

Check out this video recipe from VivoMangiando to make granita al limone at home! No special equipment needed. This is a fun recipe to make with little kids as you can squeeze the lemons together and take turns breaking up the ice crystals. It takes a few hours of waiting and checking on the granita in the freezer, but is worth it!

The video recipe has Italian subtitles explaining the steps. I have also provided a rough translation of the recipe in English below.

Ingredients (6 servings)

4 1/4 cups water (1 liter)

1 1/4 cups freshly squeezed lemon juice (300 ml) – about 5 lemons

2 cups sugar (400 gr)

Preparation

Bring the water to a boil. Add the sugar. Optionally add some of the lemon peel while the water is boiling. Once the sugar has dissolved, turn off the flame and leave to cool completely. Remove the lemon peel if you added it.

While the water is cooling, squeeze the lemons, and filter the lemon juice. Add the lemon juice to the water.

Pour the mixture into an ice cream maker or a freezer-safe container.

If using an ice cream maker, simply let it churn until the granita reaches your desired consistency.

If making the granita by hand, put the mixture in the freezer for 1-2 hours. Then, remove from the freezer and break up the ice crystals using a fork. Put the granita back in the freezer for another hour, and then mix it again. Continue until you obtain the desired consistency. The longer you leave the granita in the freezer and the more times you mix it, the finer the ice crystals will be. If it freezers over too much, you can put it in a blender to form a creamy consistency.

For other easy dessert recipes from different regions of Italy, check out our posts on Baci di Dama, Baci di Alassio, and Tiramisu’.

Buon appetito!

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