Etna and Taormina

On day three we woke early and after breakfast met our guide for the day. The hotel had arranged for us to have a tour of Mt Etna. Rita, the wonderful concerige had helped us at the last minute to also arrange a trip the same day to Taormina.  Before we left that morning she was also on top of contacting a doctor to come later in the day to treat Joe's infected toe (more on that later). 

Fabrizio from Enjoy Sicily was our guide for the day. Fabrizo was a wonderful host and guide. From the first few minutes of getting to know us he was focused on helping us understand the geology and history of the volcano and the surrounding communities. Etna was quite amazing, black lava as far as the eye can see and hundreds of craters....and tourists. After Etna we enjoyed a visiit to a local agricultural commune where we tasted olive oils, pestos, wines and honey. 

Taormina was a short drive from Etna. Fabrizo dropped us off at one end of the town and we arranged to meet up 3 hours later. We had a quick visit to the Greek Amphitheatre (another one) which was not quite as interessting as Syracusa. Then we strolled down the main road which is lined with high end shops and tourists. There seemd to be many cruise ship groups, all with stickers indicating their bus numbers. We enjoyed our short visit, but we were very glad we hadn't stayed in this town. 

An American tourist we met in Catania had recommended a restaurant for lunch. We found it, but unfortunately it was closed.  But the chef was there and he steered us to the Osteria Nero d'Avola (like the local grape) which was perfect. The chef at this restaurant subscribes to the "slow food' movement and his food was delicious and of course local. He even had an Alice Waters salad on the menu. With the advise of the waiter we chose a local "Grillo" white wine. This was our first experience with this Sicilian grape. It was a very dry, mineral wine and was a great match for our fish dishes. 

We started with fried zucchni flowers that were stuffed wth ricotta, anchovies and lemon zest. A sicilian tempura. Monica then had a fish soup with wild fennel and pine nuts and Joe had grilled fish.  The chef came out to check that we liked the food and to explain his philosophy of cooking. This was indeed one of our favourite Sicilian meals. 

When we returned to the hotel Rita arranged for the doctor to see Joe. The doctor arrived, looked at Joe's toe and confirmed the infection. But then much got lost without translation. So Rita was called and she was great and facilitating our conversation. Joe's  toe was on its way to recovery. And the nail bar in Toronto is on its way to be inspected by Public Health. 

Dinner that evening  was a light affair on the Una's roof. Had fun conversations with some Americans and Canadians.  

Dinner at the Osteria Antico Marina - in the Catania Fish Market

After returning from Syracuse we rested a bit at our hotel. It was quite nice that we could simply hand the keys of our car to the hotel staff and have them take care of the parking. For dinner we took a short 10 minute walk to the fish market (closed in the evening) and had our dinner at the Osteria Antica Marina. The food was plentiful, authentic and scrumptious. The wines were lined up on a shelf for us to choose. 

We started with the antipasta - 8 small dishes of sardines, olives, eggplant and other delights. One of us had the tasting menu  and the other just a pasta. Of course we shared and had more food than needed. Monica had Pasta Norman which is made with eggplant was great and ravioli stuffed with tuna and baby tuna roe. Also had spaghetti with scampi and artichokes; two of Joe's favourites.   

Our main course was a plate of several fried local fish. 

We highly recommend this restaurant. 

Siracusa and Ortega

On our second day in Sicily we woke early, and had breakfast at the hotel. The breakfast includes coffee, fresh orange juice (you squeeze yourself), pastries, fruit, yoghurt, meat, egg etc. Overall we were pleased with the quality and choices. 

After breakfast we grabbed a cab to the airport to collect our car. Note: the cab from the airport to the hotel the previous day was just over 30 Euros, while the reverse trip was a set price of only 20 Euros. You can probably bargain, if you have the energy.

At the airport it was easy to find the rental location, but we must have a gotten there just after a big flight arrived. We waited around 30 minutes before it was our turn. We had to be a bit forceful to get the car we actually ordered, but the the person registering us was helpful and made sure we got the Alpha Romeo. Joe was happy to have a car with pep! We also had to sign a form indicating that if, in Catania, we parked anywhere but our hotel we were liable if the car was stolen. Elsewhere in Sicily we could park where ever we liked. This of course made us a bit wary about safety in Catania; but we had no problems while there.

After we received the car we headed to Siracusa and Ortega. We succesfully navigated to Ortega, an older part of Syracuse - and an island. We easily found a parking lot and with the help of an older local a free spot. Ortega was quiet, quaint and a real pleasure. When we had walked, lunched and explored our handy iPhone helped us navigate back to the car.  We then headed to the Greek and Roman amphitheatres where again we found free parking. Take note: you have to buy entrance tickets about 3/4 kilometre before you get to the entrance. We did not know this and got extra exercise. You can't miss the ticket area it is surrounded by garish souvenir stands. 

The Greek amphitheatre was amazing. Such sophisticated design. We sat on the stone seats and imagined people watching a play there 2400 years ago! There are also caves to explore. 

Returning to Catania was uneventful except for the half an hour detour when the GPS decided to get us lost and send us down one way streets - the wrong way! 

DInner that night was at the Osteria Antica Marina in the Catania fish market. A small restaurant specializing in fish. See next post.

Catania

We arrived at the Unu Palace Hotel around 1pm. Rita greeted us and began our check in. Rita is a marvel. She is so sincere and attentive and clearly wants her customers to enjoy every moment of their trip. Once we settled into our room off we went to explore the town. Catania is the second largest city in Sicily and feels quite urban with many local people spilling into the streets shopping or doing business. After a walk about we found an outdoor cafe and sampled the local "rice balls". Sloppy and gooey they were tasty to try. 

We returned to the hotel for a "siesta" after which we enjoyed dinner and drinks on the hotel roof. The drinks and wine were very good, the food enjoyable but not outstanding. The service was attentive and professional. The bartender was especially energetic and knew his craft. 

Our room was a decent size with a walk in closet. Also had a good view.

Cooking with Mimmo: Our Cooking Class that Began in the Morning and Ended the Next Day

Our big day.

We got up, with some difficulty, to make our 9:30 appointment to cook with Mimmo in his village restaurant Baccus.  We were surprised to find that we were the sole students for that day's class.

Mimmo had obviously listened carefully to our conversation from the previous night, as one of the items we were to prepare was panelle, a chick pea fried street food, that I had mentioned I was curious about.  The other dishes for our course included a squash salad and stuffed peppers.  We also got to see Mimmo's mother in law baking bread and the yeast she has continued to use for several decades.  

The most interesting part of the cooking lesson was hearing Mimmo tell his life story as it related to his passion for food.  He has been in the kitchen since his mother measured him for a suit, at the age of 13 in Palermo, and sent him off to work in a restaurant kitchen the next day.  He has worked in kitchens ever since, from England to Germany, and now, in the village of his wife, Rossetta, he is the proud owner of his own restaurant.

Between Mimmo's life story and Joe's love of conversation, we ran out of time to complete our tutelage.  We were invited back to continue with the wine cellar tour and dinner that evening.

At 6:30 we showed up to join 6 "Brits" for  tour of Mimmo's wine cellar followed by a scrumptious dinner. Carmalina, a strong force behind the growth of tourism in this area translated Franchesco's (Mimmo's son)  explanation of the cellar and the wine. 

The Panelle and the stuffed peppers we had helped prepare were included in the Antipasta. There was also a Pasta Bolagnese  made with fresh homemade pasta. Of course there was much Mimmo wine from two different vintages. It was all delicious. The six Brits were part of a small wine club and had travelled together just for a weekend in Sicily. They were lots of fun. 

Our night ended late with a chat with Mimmo and then a slippery walk down to our car. Thanks to Monica's wisdom we were parked away from the narrow roads and had an easy drive home. 

On the following night we joined Mimmo for one last dinner. We started with fresh pasta with mussles. It was a huge serving, intended for one, generous for two or more. Joe had the fresh grilled fish and Monica opted for the "Fish Soup". This came in a large rectangular dish filled with more than 6 different fish, prawn-like shell fish and more mussels. It took her a long time to work through this delicious meal. For dessert we each had Ghiaccio Limone and were then joined by Mimmo and his lovely wife. First the homemade Lemincello appeared followed by a Mandarin Orange version. Rossetta brought out the picture book and we were delighted to hear the stories of the restaurant's grand opening and many tales about their family. Before we parted Mimmo bestowed upon us the recipe for the Lemoncello which we are eager to try when we return to Toronto. Hopefully we can find 96% alcool at the LCBO!

WE HIGHLY RECOMMEND A VISIT TO MIMMO's OSTERIA BACCHUS and TO HIS COOKING COURSE. WE HOPE TO RETURN AGAIN SOON!