L'Italo-Americano

L'Italo-Americano THURSDAY, DECEMBER 1, 2022 www.italoamericano.org 6 NEWS & FEATURES TOP STORIES PEOPLE EVENTS Continued from page 4 Rome - that bear witness to a n a l r e a d y - e s t a b l i s h e d devotion. A devotion that soon spread up North, too: in 384, Saint Orso had a church built in her honor in Ravenna and, shortly after, another was built in Rome. Lucia is associated with the eyes and their health, p e r h a p s b e c a u s e o f h e r n a m e , w h i c h m e a n s "promise of light," perhaps for an interesting hagio- graphical legend, where the young girl pulls her eyes o u t t o f o l l o w t h e w o r d s f o u n d i n t h e G o s p e l o f Matthew 9:18, if your eye causes you to sin, gouge it o u t a n d t h r o w i t a w a y . Because of her faith, how- ever, Christ visited her and r e t u r n e d t h e m t o h e r , awarding her commitment to a life without sin. B e c a u s e h e r c u l t i s s o widespread, it's not strange to see her honored in Paler- m o , e v e n i f s h e i s n ' t t h e city's patron saint. In truth, t h e r e i s a s p e c i a l r e a s o n b e h i n d i t . P a l e r m i t a n s became especially fond of Santa Lucia after she ended a d e a d l y t i m e o f f a m i n e that had hit the region in 1646: legends say that after months of hunger, the peo- ple of Palermo asked for Lucia's intercession and, s o o n , a l a r g e s h i p f i l l e d w i t h w h e a t r e a c h e d t h e c i t y ' s p o r t , e n d i n g t h i s deadly time of starvation. People were so hungry that they didn't even mill the w h e a t t o m a k e f l o u r a n d bread, but just cooked it as it was, adding only a dash of olive oil to it before eat- ing it: this is how the most traditional of all Sicilian d i s h e s f o r S a n t a L u c i a , cuccìa, was born. Today, cuccìa is not only eaten with olive oil, but also with many other ingredi- e n t s , e s p e c i a l l y s w e e t : m a n y a d d c h o c o l a t e o r ricotta to it, but also a tra- ditional Sicilian pudding c a l l e d b i a n c o m a n g i a r e , made with milk, sugar and c a n d i e d p u m p k i n . A s i t happened for other famous Sicilian delicacies like can- noli and cassata, cuccìa was likely created by nuns in their monasteries. Its name probably comes from cocciu, the word for chicco ("grain" or "corn"). But, there is another tra- ditional Santa Lucia food, one that most of you know definitely better than cuccìa, w e a r e t a l k i n g a b o u t a r a n c i n e . Y e s , w e a r e u s i n g t h e f e m i n i n e because, in the west of Sici- ly, where Santa Lucia's tra- d i t i o n s a r e p a r t i c u l a r l y strong, these tasty balls of rice and a variety of other ingredients have a feminine name! The masculine ver- sion, arancini, is the one u s e d i n t h e e a s t o f t h e region. L e g e n d s s a y t h a t arancine, just like another famous Sicilian dish, tim- ballo di riso, were created during the Arab conquest of Sicily by an Emir who want- ed to have something tasty to eat while hunting. Soon, it became obvious that, if you reduced the size of this rice, meat and saffron concoction and fried it, its transport was much easier, not only because it was smaller, but also because frying it made it more resistant. Of course, the name comes from the fact that its size and shape are, usually, just like those o f a n o r a n g e , a r a n c i a i n Italian. Arancine come in a variety of flavors: al burro, which means - strangely- they are made with ham and c h e e s e , b u t a l s o w i t h spinach, salmon, speck and even chocolate. The most t r a d i t i o n a l , h o w e v e r , r e m a i n s t h e a r a n c i n a a l ragù, enriched with deli- cious meat sauce. Another traditional dish you'll find on Santa Lucia day is the amazing gateau d i p a t a t e , o r " g r a t t ò " o r " g a t t ò . " T h e r e c i p e i s , i n fact, French in origin, and l a n d e d i n N a p l e s - n o t Palermo - from Paris thanks to Maria Carolina of Habs- burg, wife of king Ferdinand I Bourbon, who had a thing f o r F r e n c h f o o d . P o t a t o gateau is a common French delicacy from the region of Sologne, to which 18th-cen- tury Neapolitans gave their own twist, adding to it moz- z a r e l l a i n s t e a d o f F r e n c h cheese. The recipe became popular across the Bourbon kingdom and reached Paler- m o , w h e r e i t t u r n e d i n t o " g r a t t ò : " S i c i l i a n c o o k s added to it a key ingredient, meat ragù, creating the dish we enjoy still today on Santa Lucia day. In Palermo, mak- i n g g r a t t ò i s a d a y - l o n g event: you begin with the ragù, which needs to cook slowly all day, and finish with its gentle baking, fol- lowed by some time out of the oven to allow all flavors to mix. As many Sicilians can testify, grattò is even t a s t i e r t h e d a y a f t e r y o u make it. Now you know why, on the 13th of December, if you are around Palermo, you'll find all bakeries closed, but all friggitorie open, serving d o z e n s o f d e l i c i o u s arancine, panelle (chickpea fritters), gateau di patate and cuccìa: for one day, to honor the miracle of Santa L u c i a , P a l e r m i t a n s s t a y a w a y f r o m b r e a d , a n d indulge in a feast of delica- cies worthy of a king. But the day is celebrated also in other parts of Italy, where it becomes often a prequel to Christmas cele- brations. Lucia is a beloved Saint across the country, and she is honored also in the North where, however, her tradition and cult are closer to that followed in c e n t r a l a n d n o r t h e r n Europe. In many parts of Piedmont and Veneto, but a l s o i n L o m b a r d i a a n d Trentino Alto-Adige, where h e r l o r e r e s e m b l e s e v e n more that in central Europe, L u c i a , t h e s a i n t o f l i g h t , brings small gifts to people, e s p e c i a l l y c h i l d r e n , w h o usually write a letter to her asking for toys and candy a n d e x p l a i n i n g w h y t h e y deserve them. If they have been wise and obedient dur- i n g t h e y e a r , L u c i a w i l l bring them what they asked for. In the olden times, on S a n t a L u c i a n i g h t , o l d e r c h i l d r e n w o u l d w a l k t h e s t r e e t s o f t o w n s a n d v i l - lages, ringing a small bell to r e m i n d t h e i r y o u n g e r friends to go to bed early, so that the saint could come to b r i n g t h e m p r e s e n t s . A small plate with oranges, cookies, coffee, half a glass of red wine and some hay - or flour - would be left out for Lucia and her donkey, just like children do today for Santa and his reindeers. Of course, very little of it would be left in the morn- ing, a clear sign that she was i n t h e h o u s e t h e n i g h t before. And the presents? If children had been good, she would leave them, of course, b u t n o t u n d e r a t r e e n o r n e a r t h e w i n d o w : L u c i a would play "hide-and-seek" and hide them around the house for kids to find. Santa Lucia, from North to South, is a figure of love and hope, who opens up the festive season with her little gifts and the special food prepared in her honor, just like a special rehearsal of what's to come on Christ- mas day! Lucia is a figure of faith, a martyr of the Catholic Church, a young woman of more than one thousand years ago, who lived an extraordinary life. Our South is particularly fond of her, Sicily above all. The church of Santa Lucia alla Badia, in Siracusa (Photo: Vvoevale/Dreamstime)

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