Viva San Giuseppe! Happy Saint Joseph’s Day! (Altar of Saint Joseph photographed in my grandfather’s home village, Porticello, Sicily.) REGISTER TODAY for our Experience Sicily luncheon Cacio e Vino on Sunday, March 24. Details at: https://experiencesicily.com/saint-josephs-day-in-new-york-city/
Category: Observations about Culture
Saint Joseph And Homemaking
Many know San Giuseppe because it’s said that if you are hoping to sell your house, you should bury a statue of Saint Joseph upside down somewhere in your yard. Well, as a city-dweller looking to purchase a home, three years ago, I put my statue of Saint Joseph on the credenza in my living…
Inspired By The Clamour of Sicily’s Markets
Sicily has vibrant outdoor markets that in some cases are centuries old, like this one pictured, in Catania that is well known for its fresh fish, vegetables, cheese, meats, and nuts (Here, I’m buying pistachios from Bronte.). Palermo has three very famous ones: Vucciria, Ballarò, and Il Capo, each with its own character. Among their…
St. Joseph’s Pastry
For many, what they associate most with Saint Joseph’s Day (March 19) is the sweet sfince di San Giuseppe. Sfinci are fried cream puffs served hot with a dusting of cinnamon, confectioner’s sugar, and honey, or, like those pictured, cold and open-faced with a smear of sweet ricotta cream and decorated with candied orange and…
Flowers For Saint Joseph’s Day From Salemi, Sicily
Thank you to Visit Borgo Salemi for this beautiful photo! Tomorrow in New York City we’ll be (attempting) to make beautiful creations like this in preparation for our feast for St. Joseph’s Day. Join me, Allison Scola of Experience Sicily, at Cacio e Vino at 2pm for a bread making workshop where we’ll get our…
Topsy-turvy Carnevale in Sicily
Today is the final day of Carnevale! My cousin Francesca was in Sciacca this past weekend and took this photo. Sciacca boasts one of the leading celebrations in Sicily and Italy. Locals will tell you it’s been presented for centuries. Carnevale is the last hurrah before the planting season and before Lent, when many traditionally…
How To Catch Olives
Yes, those are nets. He’s preparing them for the olive harvest. The farmers lay these nets on the ground below the olive trees and, if done in the traditional way with their hands and might, they shake the trees and with their fingers prompt the olives to fall to the ground, catching them in the…
Chatting It Up For Carnevale In Sicily
Because the festivities take place on the streets, hand-held sweets are in order for Carnevale. In Sicily that means chiacchiere di Carnevale, pictured. Chiacchiere are a crunchy, sweet, fried dough powdered with sugar. Eat up! Because next Tuesday, or Martedì Grasso, is your last chance to eat these “Chatter,” as they would be translated as,…
Carnevale in Sicily Is Underway
Carnevale is underway in Italy, and in Sicily that means the towns of Acireale and Sciacca are throwing big parties. The main festivities are this coming weekend, leading up to next Tuesday’s finale. This photo is from 2017, when I was fortunate enough to be dancing in the streets with all of the other revelers….
Make Bread For Saint Joseph March 10 In New York City
Make bread with Experience Sicily on Sunday, March 10 at Cacio e Vino in NYC! It’s not bread you eat, however, but decorative bread, in honor of Saint Joseph. Like what women do all over southern Italy and Sicily to honor the patron saint of fathers, carpenters, and those who toil for their work, you…