The buccellati (fig filled Christmas cookies)

The buccellati is still a family tradition very popular in Sicily for the holidays. Each festivity has its typical specialty and Christmas certainly has a wide range of them. Buccellati is a shortbread cookie with a rich fig filling. The interesting particularity of the buccellati is that each family makes them in their own individual way, using certain ingredients instead of others. Some use dried figs and honey, while others prefer fig preserve; some put in toasted almonds, others add pine nuts… of course the result is always delicious. My grandmother used to bake the buccellati in a rustic brick-oven so the fragrance was enriched with the aroma of the fire wood. Traditionally the buccellati are given away to friends and relatives as a gift.

By Maria Lina Bommarito