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Sicily, the Mediterranean's largest island, was home to Oldways Preservation Trust's latest journey in search of food traditions that remain alive in contemporary society. Located at the crossroads of the sea, Sicily stands guard over the narrow strait of water between the island's southern shoreline and the northern shore of Tunisia -- a position that has made it a battleground for a multitude of successive governing powers. From the Phoenicians, Greeks, and Romans, to the Arabs, Normans, and Germans, among others, Sicily has a mixed legacy unmatched in the world. It boasts a cultural richness that is seen in the landscape, the architecture (including beautifully preserved Greek temples), and the people who range from lighter blonde Sicilians who descended from the Normans to darker Sicilians who descended from the Arabs.
The Oldways/CheeseART Symposium held this past spring examined the agriculture and food traditions still alive in Sicily. While based in Ragusa, we also ventured to Agrigento and Syracusa in search of the history, culture, and foods of this land.

Each successive influx of governing powers brought new ingredients, customs, and food traditions to this island, which resulted in a blending of foreign customs and traditions with the local ingredients.
Perhaps the Greeks and the Arabs exerted the most influence on Sicilian cuisine. From the time when the Greeks inhabited the island, Sicilian farmers raised wheat, olives, fruits, wine grapes, nuts, and vegetables. The Arabs brought with them their knowledge of irrigation, as well as lemons, bitter oranges, dates, pistachios, melons, sugarcane, and vinegar, which is apparent in the many sweet-and-sour Sicilian dishes. Additionally, the Arabs brought rice to Europe and accordingly, many molded and deep-fried rice dishes may be found throughout Sicily.
The Arabs also took advantage of the wheat that the Romans had planted and set up pasta production. Often, it is said that the best durum wheat grown in Italy is produced in Sicily, which in Roman times was referred to as "the granary of the Italic peninsula."
Spices arrived with the Arabs, and those combined with cane sugar helped the populace develop some truly delicious desserts, including granita in a multitude of flavors, pastries, and cakes such as the Cassata, a rich cake with a filling similar to that in cannoli. Another Sicilian favorite is Caponata, a sweet-and-sour side dish that has an eggplant base mixed with tomato and other vegetables.
A preponderance of seafood inhabits Sicilians' diets, whose culinary favorites include the sardines and anchovies found in many recipes. The dishes of the coastline cities feature fresh tuna and swordfish prepared in various ways from marinating them in oils and herbs, to stewing, roasting, or grilling them.
Flavorful and unpretentious, the cuisine of Sicily relies on the fresh ingredients of the seasons. Likewise, their cooking techniques are simple, resulting in the retention of the flavor and wholesomeness of those fresh ingredients. In fact, because they almost always use fresh ingredients, Sicilians have a knack for creating meals spontaneously, depending upon what is available rather than starting with a recipe.
From seafood to cheese, lemons, fennel, nuts, olives, tomatoes, and more, Sicilians have a strong tradition of creating a wealth of tasty and wholesome recipes that are enjoyed throughout the world.

Oldways/CheeseART
An integral part of our Sicilian journey was a visit to the Oldways/CheeseART Symposium held in Ragusa. The conference welcomed speakers who focused on the research dedicated to ensuring that historical Sicilian products continue to be produced in ways that help guarantee the protected regional methods of production.
The theme of this year's CheeseARTSymposium was Fish and Cheese and throughout the symposium, attendees dined on meals that highlighted the great flavor of cheese with other Sicilian treasures -- mainly fish but wine and bread as well.

Cheese: The Tradition of Ragusano
The 4th edition of CheeseART was organized by the Consorzio Ricerca Filiera Lattiero-Casearia (CoRFiLaC), a publicly governed entity located in Ragusa whose mission is "to reinforce the cultural role, the biodiversity, and the sustainable development connected to traditional cheeses inside society."
CoRFiLaC's focus is on linking the study of traditional dairy and cheese production in Sicily with the aim of safeguarding and adding value to its history and culture, while simultaneously respecting the environment and the consumer. With a goal to elevate the status of historical cheeses developed using traditional processes to that of 'works of art,' their efforts are directed towards helping improve the quality of life for rural families by improving farm-level production and by developing strategies to add commercial value to these artisan cheeses.
The focus of this year's symposium was on Ragusano cheese as the story associated with this raw-milk cheese is a wonderful example of the determination and successful efforts behind ensuring that this thousand-year tradition does not fall by the wayside in the rush to create industrial cheeses.
While in Sicily, our headquarters was in the city of Ragusa situated on the island's southern portion. Ragusa and its territories are home to some of Sicily's most well-known products. In particular, outside the city of Ragusa, the people of the Ibla region (as this area is known) turned to the land to make a living. The green pastures found throughout the Ragusa territory are punctuated by a dense crosshatching of dry, stone walls that are constructed of local limestone. This is where one ancient tradition -- cheesemaking -- remains an important part of present culture. The most notable of the cheeses from the Monti Iblei area is Ragusano. It is said to have been exported as far away as Dalmatia in the 16th century, and today's production techniques are still similar to those used at that time.
Ragusano DOP is part of a group of cheeses that are commonly referred to as caciocavallo, a word that is derived from a technique used long ago in which the cheeses were hung from poles. The cheese is produced from whole raw milk from cows of the Modicana breed that feed on the spontaneous forage of the Iblean uplands -- wheat, oats, and corn. After the milk is heated and coagulated with rennet within 60 to 90 minutes, the soft curd is then broken into small pieces. Hot water is added to the curd and when ready, the curd is strained off, left to ripen, and then stretched into its characteristic form -- a rectangular shape that is often called scaluni, which is the world for "step" in the Sicilian dialect. Worked traditionally by using wooden utensils and equipment, the cheese is salted by steeping it in saturated brine. In order to obtain PDO recognition, it must be aged at least three months. The aging takes place in a cool environment afforded by natural walls. Once formed, the rectangular cheeses are tied in pairs with a rope and hung like a saddlebag over a horse across wooden beams.
Ragusano cheese has a thin outer rind that is smooth and compact with a yellow color that tends to turn brownish as aging progresses. Before it is sold, the rind is rubbed with olive oil. The cheese's interior is straw yellow, with a compact texture that has holes spaced far apart. Its flavor is sweet and lightly spicy during the first few months of aging -- it becomes increasingly spicy as the aging proceeds.
In addition to Ragusano, a wide variety of cheeses from Italy and throughout the world were showcased at CheeseART. In collaboration with the Agriculture and Forest Council, CoRFiLaC is participating in The Cities of Cheese project. The goal of this non-profit project is to give value to the diverse Italian territories through its cheeses so that it can generate both cultural and gastronomic itineraries. The Cities of Cheese project is addressed to all of Italy's provinces and towns who continue to pursue traditional production of historical cheeses. The project's objective is to create a circuit in which food lovers and experts can partake in cultural visits to farms in Italian cities and towns. The goal is to have selected restaurants within each city where the traditional dishes are made with genuine ingredients. Visitors will also be able to purchase cheeses and products of Sicilian agriculture and food culture at specialized shops. The hope is that this promotional project will contribute positively to the rural world by integrating it into a modern context, while still respecting the environment and the cultural heritage and traditions.

Olive Oil
Any food lover's search for the ancient traditions of the Mediterranean diet must include olive oil. Synonymous with Italian cooking, Sicilian olive oil has a lineage that dates back to the 5th century B.C. The region produces approximately 10 percent of all Italian olive oil, with the most commonly cultivated olives being Carolea, Nocellara, and Biancolilla. Sicilian producers have been able to maintain the tradition of hand harvesting because the olives generally grow on shorter, bushier plants compared to other regions in Italy. In general, Sicilian olive oils tend to deliver a strong flavor with a pronounced grassy fragrance, and are considered spicy.
On our visit to Frantoi Cutrera, we tasted olive oil that came from the Tonda Iblea olive. Located in Chiaramonte Gulfi, a region well known for DOP olive oil, the oils receive their DOP label because they are picked by hand and processed within two days. The 25-year-old company cultivates 15 hectares of Tonda Iblea olives, along with the Moresca and Bianco Lilla varieties. A member of a consortium consisting of 200 members and 23 labels, the Oleficio processes the olives in either a traditional method that results in a delicately flavored oil, or the newer continuous extraction method that produces a spicier oil. The company's top-of-the-line extra-virgin olive oil is Primo. Obtained from the first green Tonda Iblea olives of the year, Primo is green in color and infused with an intense fresh fruit nose of green tomato and fresh aromatic herbs. The finish has a slight almond and artichoke flavor.
As is the case with other olive oil producers, Frantoi Cutrera strives to maintain their DOP designation so that they can promote their products on the world market. While the move to be DOP certified requires them to follow strict standards of growing, harvesting, and producing -- methods which may be slightly different than the old, traditional ones, it is a necessity in order to take advantage of the designation.


Wine
Another pillar of Mediterranean life is the wine industry. For many years, Sicily, whose wine production would rank sixth in the world if it were a separate country and focused on quantity over quality, produced cheap bulk wines. However, in recent years, young producers are attempting to increase the production of high-quality wines. Native varieties such as Nero d'Avola (a hearty red variety that is used in some of Sicily's most popular wines, and is often compared to Syrah), Inzolia, and Greanico are gaining ground, as are other varieties not traditionally thought of as Sicilian, such as Chardonnay, Merlot, and Cabernet Sauvignon. In fact, the use of the latter varieties has led to comparisons between Sicily and California. The most renowned of Sicily's 17 DOC wines is Marsala. The quintessential cooking wine, it makes an excellent aperitif and is a great match for ripe cheeses.
A visit to Planeta Winery allowed us to indulge in some of Sicily's top-ranked wines, including those that recently received high marks from Wine Spectator. At the moment, Planeta is experimenting with 28 different grape varieties on 320 hectares of land.
Among those grape varieties planted here are the Moscato Bianco and Moscato Nero, varieties that were brought to the island as early as the 7th century. Half of the winery's production is aged in small French barrels, a departure from most Sicilian wines, which are not traditionally aged in oak. The result is a hint of chocolatey flavor. Working tirelessly to improve the reputation of Sicilian wines, the owners of Planeta, along with a growing number of younger producers are dedicated to increasing the quality and the production of wines to help bring Sicily to the center stage of the wine industry.

Celebrating Ancient Traditions
The appeal of Sicilian cuisine is that it is simple and straightforward, yet flavorful and healthful. As the food traditions developed through the centuries, Sicilians welcomed new ingredients and customs, and ultimately made them their own. Helping bring all that Sicily has to offer to the table, the Oldways/CheeseART symposium highlighted the effort to bring back the old ways of producing the cheeses of Sicily. At a time in history when healthful, nutritious, and appealing foods are more popular than ever, the allure of Sicilian cuisine is unmistakable.