Sicilian Caponata
You’re receiving this email as a subscriber to our free newsletter. Grazie grazie mille! 💛 We are very excited to introduce our new quarterly menu and recipe downloads which we are calling ‘A Tavola’ (at the table) for our premium subscribers. Our first issue in October will be one that is so very near and dear to our hearts - Sunday Supper, a menu featuring our Mom’s legendary ragu. Our hope is that these recipes will inspire you to gather friends and family ‘a tavola’. 💛
Our recent trip to Sicily really has touched my heart. An island of five million people where Michele and I have deep family connections, even after three weeks there last month, there is still a huge amount that remains for us to explore. Before we left, I read an article that reframed Sicily as not situated in the south of Italy, nor at the farthest reaches of Europe, but Sicily as the heart of the Mediterranean. I found this to be so very true everywhere we looked. ❤️
In ancient ruins and temples still standing, to legends long ago of a solicitous and beheaded Arab prince turned palm planter (teste di moro), to street life and food, Sicily is alive with emotion and passion. The tastes and smells in the markets and on restaurant tables match perfectly with the people, both generations-old and recent immigrants.
My understanding of the Islamic influence on Sicilian food was validated when we got back to LA. We invited our close Afghan friends to lunch so I could try out some of the dishes we had eaten. Without prompting, our friends said that the tastes reminded them of the Middle East. The agrodolce (sweet and sour) flavors, sesame seeds, eggplant and citrus all came to Sicily originally from the Arab regions of North Africa and the Middle East.
Of all the dishes we ate, the one that was literally on every menu was caponata. Always with a base of eggplant and celery, tomatoes for sweetness, and capers or olives for sourness, caponata is usually served as an appetizer, at room temperature, along with some sesame seed bread.
The big caponata ah-ha moment for me was realizing that wherever we tried it in Sicily, the sweet and sour flavors were never aggressive or overwhelming. I’ve made and eaten caponata that had a lot vinegar and sugar. In Sicily, those ingredients are added only when needed to augment the natural flavors. Peeled whole tomatoes seem more common in this recipe than just tomato sauce. Finally, unsweetened baking cocoa was added for a hint of bitterness.
I have read that there are 37 certified varieties of caponata. The recipe below is closest to the one we ate in Palermo at Vossia. See the recipe headnotes for some additions. It is best made a day ahead, refrigerated, and then allowed to come to room temperature before serving. I roast the eggplant vs. frying it, which is more traditional, to reduce the mess from frying, but with a similar flavor.
Enjoy making caponata before the end of the season, while you can still get good fresh eggplant and tomatoes.
Buon appetito!
Joe 💕
Get the recipe on OurItalianTable.com!