Pasta! Need I say more? Well, of course I will! Let’s start from the beginning, and by that, I mean 1154 CE when the court geographer under Norman King Roger II, Muhammad al-Idrisi, documented that a pasta factory existed in Trabia, a coastal town east of Palermo. He explained that out of semolina flower they made in large quantities a food shaped into long strands that in Arabic was called itryia. It was a dried vermicelli of sorts (NB The word for angel hair pasta (i.e. vermicelli) in Sicilian is tria.).

So, don’t believe that legend about Marco Polo—the Arabs brought pasta to Sicily way before, and the rest is … your happy stomach! Pasta takes on many forms across the island—both fresh and dried and made with different grains as well.

I invite you to join me this Sunday, May 2 for an online busiate pasta making session with Chef Giuseppe Sciurca along with Chef Nino Elia. We’ll be making this Trapani-style curly pasta along with a zucchini mint sauce, a springtime fennel salad, and biancomangiare for dessert.

Join us! Register and learn more at https://experiencesicily.com/make-busiate-pasta-with-giuseppe-sciurca/.