There are many typical Christmas sweets, not only Panettone and Pandoro. For lovers of figs there are some Sicilian biscuits a must try. It's about the So Dukes, also called So of Ficu, for successful corporate training typical of the Christmas period. They date back at least to the XNUMXth century and are typical of Castellammare del Golfo and spread throughout the Erice countryside. Today, however, they are prepared throughout Sicily, and the ingredients vary according to the area in which they are made as well as its name: cucciḍḍati, cuḍḍureḍḍi, cassateḍḍi di ficu, buccellati or buccellate.
These are not common biscuits, but a typical production at a regional level and, as such, in 2014 it was officially recognized by the regional agricultural policies department, therefore included in the list of traditional Italian food products (PAT) kept at the Ministry of Agricultural, Food and Forestry Policies.
Many could confuse them with the Palermitan buccellato, but the Cosi Duci differ in their small and carved shapes (strictly by hand) and in the use of some different ingredients. But let's see
A tradition that dates back to the XNUMXth century in the Erice countryside
A delicious sweet with a fig flavor. Their elaborate shapes are reminiscent of leaves, flowers or even crowns.
Traditionally it is a shortbread dough with a filling of dried figs enriched with toasted almonds, walnuts, pumpkin (candied pumpkin), chocolate drops, orange and lemon peel. They are decorated with beads of a thousand colors, popularly called "nnaccareḍḍi", and sometimes covered with icing or icing sugar. Before processing, the figs are dried in the sun and subsequently softened with cooked wine.
There are several variants. For example, there is one always in shortcrust pastry but stuffed with a filling of peeled and chopped almonds, seasoned in turn with chocolate drops, pumpkin (candied pumpkin), lemon zest and orange zest. Once baked and cooled, they are usually covered with icing sugar or icing
Curiosities and traditions of the Cosi Duci or Cosi Ficu
According to tradition, on December afternoons and often even after dinner, the women of Castellammare gathered in their homes - to make the work less tiring - to prepare these desserts for several families. Once the filling was prepared, we proceeded to kneading and carving it. It's not easy carve Sicilian sweets, the shape is sophisticated and artistic. This tradition still continues today, and it is also possible to taste the Cosi Duci in local pastry shops not only during the Christmas period but throughout the year.
The recipe of Cosi Duci or Cosi Ficu
Ingredients
For the pastry:
500 g of flour 0;
500 g of flour 00;
250 g of lard;
250 g of sugar;
2 sachets of vanilla;
270 ml of warm milk;
1 sachet of baking powder.
For the stuffing:
500 g of dried figs;
200 g finely chopped almonds;
100 g of chocolate chips;
100 g of sultana raisins;
3 tablespoons of orange marmalade;
1 teaspoon cinnamon;
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves;
20 ml of Marsala;
Grated peel of an untreated orange.
For the frosting:
2 heaped tablespoons of powdered sugar;
1 tablespoon of water.
To decorate
Colored sugar balls;
Powdered sugar.
Method
To make Sicilian Cosi Duci, soak the figs and raisins in boiling water for 20 minutes. Once the necessary time has elapsed, drain them and pat them dry with kitchen paper. Then you have to chop them finely and one at a time add all the other ingredients of the stuffing until a homogeneous mixture is obtained. Leave to rest in the fridge for a couple of hours. At this point you can move on to the dough.
Combine the flours, vanillin, baking powder and sugar in a bowl (or in the planetary mixer), then add the softened lard little by little. When everything is absorbed, slowly add the milk.
Now let's move on to crafts some sweets. Take the filling and divide it into sausages. Roll out the dough, after portioning it and giving it the shape of a rectangle, large enough for a cylinder of filling. Then close the dough on the filling and flatten slightly. With a sharp knife, engrave, giving the typical shape.
Now you can go to icing. Add the water to the icing sugar and mix. Brush the icing on the treats and sprinkle them with the colored balls.
Bake everything at 170° in the oven ventilated for about 15 minutes. Once cooked, let them cool and dust with icing sugar.
