We talked about my favorite Italian cuisine, Northern Italian, earlier this month. Today, let's go all of the way to the tip of the "boot" and out in the sea to the island of Sicily and talk a little bit about their food.

*****

"Sicilian Cuisine is one of Italy's most sophisticated and certainly the most eclectic; almost every people to sail the Mediterranean -- the Greeks, Romans, Carthaginians, Arabs, Normans, Spaniards, and even the English -- has visited, bringing new ingredients and ideas that the long-term residents adapted and reworked."

A few specifics:

"Around Syracuse and Ragusa cooks still draw from Greek traditions, making abundant use of vegetables -- their eggplant parmesan is renowned -- while meats, mostly pork and mutton, were traditionally reserved for feast days. Palermo's cooking is more sophisticated, revealing French influences that emerge in dishes such as caponata, falsomagro, a rich meats stew, and involtini alla palermitana.In Trapani fish of all kinds predominate. The area, which faces North Africa, has maintained closer ties with the Arabs than other parts of the island, and is especially known for fish-laced cuscus.Messina is instead more Continental, with an abundance of fish, many recipes that reveal French influences, and others that hearken back to the peasantry, for example Spaghetti alla Norma. Finally, there are the sweets: Pasta Reale, Cassata, Cannoli...

Wines of Sicily

"Sicily's best known wine is Marsala, a fortified wine similar to Sherry and Madeira. It can be dry or sweet and is widely used by chefs as a cooking wine. The best-known table wine is the dry white Mt. Etna."

******

"SPINACHI IN TEGAME (SPINACH SAUTEED WITH GARLIC)
A fast, savory side dish.

2 Tablespoons olive oil

6 garlic cloves, minced

2 pounds (or three 10-ounce bogs) fresh spinach, washed and trimmed

1 teaspoon black pepper

Place olive oil in a large frying pan and heat. Add garlic and saute until just golden. (Do not allow to brown.) Add spinach, tossing constantly, until just wilted. Remove from heat, toss in pepper,and serve immediately."

serves 6

******

"Caponata - Chopped vegetables such as eggplant (the most essential ingredient), tomatoes, onions, green peppers, olives, and celery individually cooked in olive oil, then combined. Caponata is similar in concept to the French Ratatouille."

Use your imagination and created your own version of this dish. Lily...