CHEESE FROM SICILY
To the collective narrative project Tasting cheese joins Marianna Pipi, who tells us i cheeses from Sicily.
Marianna, Sicilian passionate about dairy art, is majoring in “Entrepreneurship and quality of the agro-technical enterprise” and plans to enroll in the first level Onaf course as soon as possible.
We asked her what her preferences are for cheeses, and here are his answers.
– What is the cheese in your area to which you are most attached for sentimental reasons and why?
«The cheese from my area to which I am very attached is definitely the Caciocavallo Palermitano (also called Caciocavallo di Godrano). When I was little with my parents we always went to Godrano, because there some friends had a dairy where they mostly produced caciocavallo. I remember that entering that dairy was a truly unique emotion, as well as an excuse to eat a little secretly ".
– Which cheese do you prefer to eat “absolute”? And which one do you prefer to use in gastronomic preparations?
«I love all kinds of cheeses, and this question puts me in trouble. It is really difficult to choose! But probably what I would never give up is the Grana Padano. While not typical of my region, it is a product that never fails on my table and in my refrigerator ".
CHEESE FROM SICILY
at Marianna Pipi
A wonderful phrase is attributed to Frederick II of Swabia: "I don't envy Heaven to God because I'm happy to live in Sicily".
How can I not share this thought. Sicily is an indescribable region that offers a lot. It is a land of sea and sun, of hills and plains, of innovations and traditions. And it is precisely among the traditions that two well-known and appreciated DOP cheeses are included: Piacentinu Ennese and Provola dei Nebrodi.
Piacentinu Ennese DOP
Piacentinu Ennese is a DOP cheese with ancient origins with a hard paste made from Sicilian sheep, produced in nine municipalities in the province of Enna with the same name.
It is said that the name "piacentinu" derives from the term "pleasant", which in Sicilian means "what you like". A legend says instead that the term comes from "piangentinu" which means "crying", due to the fat tears oozing from the shape.
It was mentioned in the 4th century AD. by the historian Gallo, who told of the salting systems and the addition of saffron to give it its typical color. The most imaginative story that involves him calls into question Ruggero the Norman who, intorno al 1090 d.C, he ordered to invent a cheese to fight the depression of his wife Adelasia. In fact, saffron was used, considered an energizing spice, antioxidant and antidepressant.
The distinctive feature of this wonderful cheese is the addition of saffron (Crocus sativus) to milk before coagulation, which gives it that aroma and that characteristic homogeneous more or less intense yellow color.
The rennet used is lamb or kid rennet obtained from infants in the production area.
Black pepper can be incorporated into the cheese paste (black pepper) in whole grains.
The salting takes place dry and the minimum seasoning is 60 days from the date of production.
Piacentinu Ennese is born from the processing of the whole milk of Sicilian native Comisana sheep which represent approximately 60% of the total number of animals reared in the reference area; it is traditionally made from raw milk, in which rennet paste is used as a coagulant, which is obtained from the maceration of the abomasum of young lambs in salted brine and which is always placed inside a vat and worked with wooden tools.
In Piacentinu Ennese the curd is cooked at a temperature of about 45 ° C and then is broken to reduce the granules. After being broken, it is cut into coarse pieces and arranged, anche qui, in rush baskets where it will be, dry salted and left to rest for at least sixty days. The addition of peppercorns and above all saffron gives the product its peculiarity and characterizes its flavor. Successivamente, the cheese is left to mature under the pan (liquid that remains in the processing of whey) per 3-4 ore, after which it is left to rest for a whole day.
After about a week, we move on to the dry salting phase, which is practiced by hand on each shape. For the following month, the Piacentino Ennese is continually turned upside down, so as to spread the salt on all its sides.
Provola dei Nebrodi PDO
Provola dei Nebrodi is an ancient cow's milk cheese that owes its name to the large area in which it is produced, which goes from the province of Catania to that of Messina, passing through Enna. Also known in the past as "Provula di Floresta ", due to its origins linked to this small town, the highest of the Nebrodi and the whole of Sicily.
This cheese is produced from March to June and today is one of the Sicilian cheeses with a protected designation of origin.
It has a smooth and shiny crust, straw yellow in color whose weight of each wheel varies from 1,2-1,5 kg.
This cheese has a very particular characteristic: it is the only Sicilian provola subjected to seasoning (beyond 75 giorni) which makes it savory and slightly spicy. Provola dei Nebrodi is produced following a very elaborate procedure, which allows this typical Sicilian product to obtain its characteristic shape, in addition to the inimitable taste. The cheese is made with milk obtained from the evening milking of the cows, mainly cows of the native Modicana breed fed on pasture whose various herbs give a typical flavor to the final product. The milk obtained is filtered and stored in a tank at a temperature of 4 ° C.
For the production of Provola dei Nebrodi, as for all Sicilian PDOs, the use of wooden equipment is mandatory, come la “tina”, the "rotula" and the "piddiaturi", as they give the product which characteristics for which it is so much appreciated.
Subsequently the provola are formed and then salted and then tied in pairs and placed astride a wooden stick, the “perch”, where they remain for a period of not less than six months. The aging rooms, cool and breezy related to the climatic conditions of the Nebrodi mountain areas, they accompany the maturation of the Provola dei Nebrodi during the various months of maturation, helping to determine its structural and aromatic profile.
Over time, the skill and wisdom of the cheesemakers have generated unique variants of the Provola dei Nebrodi; exist, infatti, very particular versions such as the one with green lemon or other citrus fruits, which differ from the traditional for a variation in the production die. To get this product, during maturing, Provola dei Nebrodi is filled with the whole citrus fruit, in order to flavor the cheese.
Marianna Pipi