These savory delights are called crispelle, a street food from Catania. They are made by pairing ricotta and anchovies then rolling them in semolina flour and deep frying them in lard. Sweet crispelle are made with rice that has been soaked in sweetened milk, then rolled in flour. Once fried, it is coated in honey. YUM.
I photographed these last winter during the fireworks at the Festa di Sant’Agata.
Allison Scola is founder, owner, and curator of Experience Sicily and the Cannoli Crawl. Named one of the experts for the 2019 New York Times Travel Show, Scola writes and lectures on Sicily and leads immersive tours and designs custom itineraries that delight discerning travelers. She has been featured on Rudy Maxa’s World with the Carey’s, America’s #1 Travel Radio Show and as the cannoli expert in the documentary Cannoli, Traditions Around the Table. Scola has lectured about Sicily at University of Pennsylvania, The New School, LIU Post University, Queens College, Westchester Italian Cultural Center, at high schools in the New York City metropolitan area, and at events in New York City.
