Of course we know that for la Festa di Santa Lucia Sicilians eat Cuccìa (pictured top) and arancine (rice balls), purposefully avoiding wheat grain in recognition of the severe famine of 1624 that the patron saint of wheat, eyes, sight, and light helped resolve once she heard her devotees’ prayers. But what I learned from my friend Ed Hold, who was in Ortigia last December and who took these fantastic photos, is that cookies shaped as eyes have become part of the feast’s new traditions. 

Learn more about Santa Lucia and this important Sicilian feast at experiencesicily.com and search for Santa Lucia.