Having recently returned from our trip to Sicily and Budapest, I wanted to let our readers know about a wonderful restaurant in Siracusa. It's called Basirico's and it is in Ortigia, specializing in seafood. My friend and I ate there twice and had octopus (my personal favorite and something you don't eat in the Rocky Mountains) and sea bass.
My Neapolitan friend just came up for a visit to the cool, refreshing mountains from Florida and has the cookbooks we love to read - the Sicilian Food Lovers cookbook (she wants to take that cooking class in Cefalu from Cinzia and Antonio!), plus Eating in Sicily and a few others. So I don't have my normal cookbooks around me.
But octopus - goodness! What a treat! When I first had calamari (which is squid and not the same, correct???) in Chicago it tasted like my Jeep tires. I decided calamari and octopi were not for me!
In Siracusa and Sicily in general, it's a whole different ball game. I don't know what they do, but it's tender, perfect and exquisite. Olive oil, parsley, salt, pepper and garlic with breadcrumbs is what I Sapori di Sicilia recommends for baking small squid in the oven. (p. 178)
While I don't think I can buy any calamari or octopus (polpa or polpette as I saw it referred to in Siracusa) in a store here that even vaguely compares to fresh product in Sicily, the memory will linger for a long, long time.
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