Sicilian Cassata
I’d call it the Queen of Cakes, regal and sumptuous in the decoration, a feast of colours and flavours! The perfect portrait of the island. I'm of Sicilian origins but don't often go back to Sicily as it's quite far away from whee I live. Anyway I love it! Everybody loves it, you can't help it! What I love most is the colour of the sea, a deep blue which is in sharp contrast with the bright yellow of the sun, the white of the houses and the intense colours of the flowers. Every time I leave the island, I close my eyes and try to store this magical symphony of colours hoping it'll help me to brighten up my Winter's gray routine.
Once I was on a short holiday on the Adriatic Sea and my kids were all very young. I usually took them to Sicily but that time we were there with other friends. We got the beach and all the kids started to play, after some time my son came to me saying: "Mum, when are we going to the seaside?" I said we were in the right place and he went on "No, Mum I mean the blue sea, this can't be the sea it's brown". So I realized he was another unaware victim of the magic of the blue sea, just exactly like me. The spell was cast again and I can even give a name and a place to this spell: it's the deep blue of the water near Scopello or near the Tonnara del Secco in San Vito Lo Capo, two places which are now a must-see but were solitary paradises when I was a child. As you understand it’s a cake which is particularly dear to me, as it belongs to my family tradition. It's always been on our table on special occasions: it was my aunt Lucia who made it or my mum’s brother, Stefano, who sent us one directly from the best pastry shop in Alcamo.
Then when I was old enough to make cakes I made it myself. It wasn’t easy to get to the same high standard both for quality and look, but after some time I made it! Every time it's a new experience when you get to the decoration, a different look but always rich and colourful: green for the marzipan, white for the icing and red and orange for the candied fruits.
I’d call it the Queen of Cakes, regal and sumptuous in the decoration, a feast of colours and flavours! The perfect portrait of the island. I'm of Sicilian origins but don't often go back to Sicily as it's quite far away from whee I live. Anyway I love it! Everybody loves it, you can't help it! What I love most is the colour of the sea, a deep blue which is in sharp contrast with the bright yellow of the sun, the white of the houses and the intense colours of the flowers. Every time I leave the island, I close my eyes and try to store this magical symphony of colours hoping it'll help me to brighten up my Winter's gray routine.
Once I was on a short holiday on the Adriatic Sea and my kids were all very young. I usually took them to Sicily but that time we were there with other friends. We got the beach and all the kids started to play, after some time my son came to me saying: "Mum, when are we going to the seaside?" I said we were in the right place and he went on "No, Mum I mean the blue sea, this can't be the sea it's brown". So I realized he was another unaware victim of the magic of the blue sea, just exactly like me. The spell was cast again and I can even give a name and a place to this spell: it's the deep blue of the water near Scopello or near the Tonnara del Secco in San Vito Lo Capo, two places which are now a must-see but were solitary paradises when I was a child. As you understand it’s a cake which is particularly dear to me, as it belongs to my family tradition. It's always been on our table on special occasions: it was my aunt Lucia who made it or my mum’s brother, Stefano, who sent us one directly from the best pastry shop in Alcamo.
Then when I was old enough to make cakes I made it myself. It wasn’t easy to get to the same high standard both for quality and look, but after some time I made it! Every time it's a new experience when you get to the decoration, a different look but always rich and colourful: green for the marzipan, white for the icing and red and orange for the candied fruits.
Song: All together now!
Let the colours brighten up your day!
Song: All together now!
http://time-for-cake-making.blogspot.it/2013/07/cake-twenty-six-sicilian-cassata.html
