THE TYPICAL SICILIAN BREAKFAST

“Caffè e cornetto? No! Brioche e granita!”

In Sicily, the “granita” is an integral part of breakfast.

The summer version par excellence for Sicilians is this inseparable combination!

It is not just a tradition or a habit, but a real institution!

Let me just say the following: in Messina, the coffee granita served in a classic glass and accompanied by a hot brioche is now considered a municipal brand named De.Co.

This typical Sicilian cold sweet treat is a legacy of the Arab rule.

The Arabs used to consume the “shertbet”, a slush drink flavoured with rose water.

Following the Arab tradition, snow was collected in Sicily on Mount Etna as well as on the Peloritani, Iblei or Nebrodi mountains. This was kept in the “nivieri”, which are special stone buildings. In summer, the formed ice was taken out, grated and covered with fruit syrup.

The “granita”, as it is prepared today, is a mixture of water, sugar and fruit that is slowly but never fully frozen. Continuously mixed, it gets a grainy but at the same time creamy consistency.

The “brioche”, soft and with a light and dark crust, should be soaked into the “granita” as if this was a cappuccino.

If you are on holiday in Sicily, you should try it! If you don’t have the chance to get to Sicily, you should at least try to prepare it at home!

The original recipe below is from Fabio, pastry chef at Paradiso dei Dolci, an excellent Sicilian pastry shop in Nuremberg!

Recipe: Sicilian Brioche with “Tuppo”

Ingredients
1 kg flour 0
15 g salt
150 g sugar
150 g butter
4 eggs + 2 egg yolks
400 ml milk
50 gr yeast

Put the milk in a saucepan and heat it slightly.
Dissolve the yeast in the milk, pour over the sifted flour and knead well.
Add eggs, sugar, salt and melted butter.
Knead until the dough is smooth, elastic and dry.

The brioche dough should be prepared the day before and left in the freezer in a closed container.

Remove the dough from the freezer the next morning and leave it to rest and rise for 12 hours.

Cut it into small portions: 1x 90 gr. for the bottom + 1x 20 gr for the “tuppo” (cup), for a total of approx. 110 gr. for each brioche.

The portions should be kept separate on different pans and left to rest for 1 hour.

After that, put the bottom and tuppo together using the egg and cover the whole brioche with egg using a brush.

Bake at about 200° for 20 minutes.

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