Christmas has arrived and like every year, traditions and roots live again. Who lives overseas knows a lot about this and, even if only for a few days, thanks to the magic of Christmas, prepares dishes linked to traditions and roots of his homeland.
Yes, our branches and leaves grow where we live, but we plunge our roots into the country where we come from. In my case, for example, I live under the beautiful sun of Calabria, but my traditions and roots are between Rome and Ciociaria territory.
I grew in the shadow of my mum and aunt, who always spent so many hours preparing the dishes of tradition. In the last few years both my angular columns are gone and I force myself to improvise dishes easy to prepare for Christmas days. This year I decided to pay tribute to the land, that since 7 years I call (but with a few reservations) home. I proved myself with Christmas cookies of Reggio Calabria par excellence: Calabrian fig cookies or petrali. Under the watchful eye of my mother-in-law I prepared the filling: a mixture of finely chopped dry figs, walnuts and almonds, blended with coffee, cocoa and vermouth, all covered with a shell of pastry and decorated with a thin coating of white or dark chocolate or with tiny sugar beads of varying colours.
What can I say? Maybe it was just the beginner’s luck, but my cookies received approval from the critics.
Do you want to test yourself with the preparation of petrali cookies or nougat? We will be your partners offering an engaging and interactive multisensory experience: you will discover traditions and roots of Calabria thanks to what you smell, see, taste and feel.