The Sicily’s green gold
They are treasures in Sicily that deserve to be revealed and savored slowly. Among these, some are great protagonists of Italian cuisine tout court: Bronte, a small village perched on Etna, is known for its green gold which is also the story of a distillation of mythology, love, betrayal, cowardice. From the Cyclopes to the Emperor of Constantinople, from Pope Borgia to Admiral Nelson, from Heatcliff to Nino Bixio, up to Giovanni Verga: all linked to Bronte, and perhaps they have never eaten a pistachio. Bronte means Thunder and is the name of one of Cyclopes who forged Zeus' thunderbolts in the Etnian forges of Hephaestus. The Bronte cave is one of those caves where dwarf elephants went to die, at the time they inhabited Sicily and when their skulls were found. The enormous nasal hole of the proboscis on the forehead was mistaken for Cyclops' eye and thus the legend of the Cyclopes in Sicily was born. Well yes... dwarf elephants never had the opportunity to taste pistachios! In fact, for these to arrive in Bronte we will have to wait for the invasion of the Arabs; it was the Muslims who grafted the most exquisite Middle Eastern plants into the fertile Sicilian lava soil: peaches, citrus fruits and pistachios, to be precise... and from that moment on they were only "green gold" pistachios, the frastuca, as it was called by the times when it served as a medicine, it is truly emerald in colour, the flavor and aroma are incomparable and make ice creams, sauces, creams, sauces and desserts unique, for an incredible adaptability in a very delicate balance between sweet and savory. A few years ago, for those who weren't from these parts, pistachio was just a flavor that was too green in color in ice cream shops that were still far from being defined as artisanal, or a delicious appetizer to accompany an aperitif. Then things changed: more awareness, more desire to discover what lies behind what arrives on the table. In Bronte it is a real collective ritual that involves the entire population, including women and children. Green pruning is a tradition that is passed down from father to son without interruption. Testimony of a culture, the peasant one, according to which, thanks to "rest", the plant absorbs the substances necessary from the lava soil to produce a fruit richer in aromas with unmistakable flavours. Due to the impervious and steep environment and the danger of the fruit dispersing among the volcanic rocks, the "sciarelle dei lochi", the labor for harvesting is expensive. This is still done entirely manually: by dropping the fruits from the trees directly into a container carried on the shoulder or by shaking the branches to collect the pistachios on sheets spread at the foot of the plants or, in some cases, even with the use of a upside down umbrella.This precious emerald inside the shell is unique if it comes from the rock. Imitations are useless, because the green pistachio of Bronte DOP is sweet and fragrant only if the production soil is sprinkled with sweat and tears...
