Well, we’ve just got back from Taormina, Sicily, having had a wonderful well-earned holiday. The weather was superb, and so was the food. I’ve never eaten so much!!
The food in Sicily is delicious, and healthy – well, if you ignore the indulgence of Tiramisu and the Gelati!
One of the amazing produce of Sicily is its citrus fruit. Sweet, juicy, oranges and mouth-wateringly sharp aromatic lemons. The Limoncello is simply superb.
The pizzas easily outshine anything you can buy at home. No deep, cheese-filled crusts slopped with tomato-based sauces and sliced mozzarella there; just wonderfully thin crusts and often just a cheese base. 
The ham and mushroom pizza is a delicious prosciutto and porcine on a mild cheese base. Drizzle with extra virgin olive oil, black pepper – and YUM!
The pasta is amazing; tastily drizzled in olive oil and wonderfully al-dente.
Pasta alla Norma is a speciality of Sicily. Totally vegetarian, its main ingredients are tomato, ricotta and aubergine and can be served on any style of pasta – the ribbon pasta for me. Although suitable for vegetarians you certainly don’t need to be one to enjoy it.
Seafood is available in or on pretty much everything, ranging from regular fresh Tuna to exotic Sea Urchin.
I recommend strolling the back streets for the best eateries. One of our favourites was Osteria da Rita (which I nicknamed ‘Rita’s Caff’). We ordered a salad each & a sneaky bowl of chips. The table was firstly laden with a free bruschetta each – warm and succulent, then a bag of delicious bread slices with oil & balsamic vinegar to the side.
My fella had a good old Caprese salad followed by a pasta with squid, squid ink & mushrooms.
I chose the Kriminale salad (loved the name) of ham, mozzarella, canned tuna, peppers, mushrooms, carrot, corn, artichoke & salad
leaves. It came in a bowl and was huge! I couldn’t manage a second course, let alone a pud. Sadly.
We worked our way around all the local wines with eager gusto. Although one was a little sweet for me, more a sherry really, there were none I failed to enjoy; Proseccos, reds and dry whites galore.
Being creatures of habit and home comforts we found ourselves a great little bar – the BamBar. Fab little place, superb local characters and a great ‘people-watching’ spot when sat outside. Positioned right by a little church, we enjoyed choral singing one evening as the church doors sat open and locals came and went at their leisure.
We also walked for miles. Up the mountain twice! My legs complained but I guess it’s helpful for the heart with all that eating. The amazing views looking down from Castelmola to Taormina made all the strenuous exercise well worth the effort. Sicily is incredibly beautiful and no less so from the top of a mountain looking down.
I treated myself to a book of Sicilian sweet recipes, and look forward to having a play with those. We well and truly loved our break, and can’t wait to start thinking of the next jaunt.
‘Other holiday destinations are available’.
love
Maggie x