Ceci Alla Siciliana Recipes

CECI ALLA SICILIANA

Steps:

• In a large bowl, stir the chickpeas, celery, onion, parsley, chiles, garlic, olive oil, and vinegar. Season, to taste, with salt. Serve immediately or let stand for 1 or 2 hours and re-season just before serving.
• Slice the bread into 1/2-inch thick slices. Toast on a preheated grill or in an oven for 4 to 5 minutes. Brush 1side with olive oil. Season with salt and pepper.
• Spoon some of the chickpea mixture over the bread slices and serve immediately.

CANNOLI ALLA SICILIANA

Steps:

• Combine the flour, cinnamon, shortening, sugar and salt, and wetting gradually with the wine, knead together with fingers until rather hard dough or paste is formed. Form into a ball, cover with a cloth and let stand for about 1 hour. Cut dough in half and roll half of the dough into a thin sheet about 1/4-inch thick or less and cut into 4-inch ovals.
• Place a metal tube diagonally across each oval lengthwise. Wrap dough around tube by overlapping the 2 sides, sealing the overlapping sides with a little egg white. Meanwhile heat vegetable oil in a large deep pan for deep frying. Drop 1 or 2 of the tubes at a time into the hot oil, fry gently on all sides until dough turns a golden brown color. Remove from pan, let cool a little, gently remove shell from the metal tube. Set shells aside to become cold. Repeat procedure until shells are all made.
• Mix the ricotta thoroughly with sifted dry ingredients. Add two drops of vanilla and chopped fruit peel. Mix and blend well. Chill mixture before filling shells. Fill cold shells and smooth filling evenly at each end of the shell. Sprinkle the shells with confectioners' sugar.
• Refrigerate until ready to serve.

SICILIAN BRASCIOLE A LA LENA

Steps:

• Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil a heavy skillet over medium heat. Saute onion until translucent, 10 minutes. Stir in garlic and parsley, and continue cooking until onions begin to brown. Remove from heat, and allow to cool.
• In a medium bowl, combine bread crumbs, Romano cheese, raisins, pine nuts and pepper.
• Pound steak to 1/2 inch with a moistened mallet or the side of a cleaver. Spread onion mixture evenly over meat, leaving a 1 inch border around the edges. Spread bread crumb mixture in an even layer, and drizzle with 1 tablespoon olive oil. Roll up from the narrow end, and tie tightly with kitchen twine.
• Heat remaining olive oil in Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Brown roll on all sides, 1 to 2 minutes per side. Pour in spaghetti sauce, reduce heat to low, and simmer, covered, for 2 hours, until tender.