Create successful ePaper yourself
Turn your PDF publications into a flip-book with our unique Google optimized e-Paper software.
THE HIT LIST<br />
CAFÉS How good can an ice cream be?<br />
Or marmalade? Or a pastry?<br />
The answer is, in the hands of Corrado<br />
Assenza it can be sensational. When you<br />
bear in mind that Italians are already famed<br />
for their gelato and dolce, you realize just<br />
how great an achievement this is.<br />
The 52-year-old confectionery king is<br />
a native of Noto in southeastern Sicily,<br />
where he has made Caffè Sicilia (which<br />
was founded in 1892) even more famous<br />
than the strikingly beautiful baroque town<br />
in which it sits.<br />
Assenza is a fourth-generation ice cream<br />
maker, born and raised at the café. He<br />
spent his early years in the kitchen, learning<br />
the art of ice cream making. Then he studied<br />
entomology (the study of insects) at<br />
the University of Bologna. While researching<br />
bees he learned almost everything<br />
there is to know about honey but then his<br />
aunt, who was running the café at the time,<br />
asked him to take over. Assenza packed<br />
up and returned to Sicily. These days his<br />
wife, Nives, can be found greeting guests<br />
and serving the world-renowned ice cream<br />
from behind the counter while Assenza<br />
is busy at culinary conventions, swapping<br />
ideas with some of Italy’s top chefs, or<br />
Something sweet: Almond granita<br />
served with a brioche, and ( below )<br />
a delivery of fresh Sicilian oranges<br />
developing new mouth-watering mixtures<br />
using the finest local ingredients. He’s considered<br />
a pioneer for his innovative fusions<br />
of flavors, such as strawberry with Sicilian<br />
tomato, basil and a hint of garlic; saffron<br />
and orange; vanilla and Szechuan pepper;<br />
or bergamot with candied pumpkin.<br />
Assisting Assenza in the basement<br />
kitchen are Reiko Akata, who moved from<br />
Japan seven years ago to apply for a job<br />
after hearing about the cafe, and Corrado<br />
Lucci, pastry chef and Assenza’s fellow<br />
innovator for 24 years.<br />
Assenza travels the region to source<br />
the best ingredients. He uses much of the<br />
almond harvest in the region around Noto<br />
to make his rich, concentrated almond<br />
paste. When the rare Sicilian wild strawberry<br />
plant was endangered, due to its low<br />
profitability for the farmers, Assenza started<br />
cultivating the plant himself in his garden.<br />
He’s also lobbying farmers to stick to<br />
traditional agricultural methods, earning an<br />
international reputation as a green chef.<br />
The sorcerer and his apprentices:<br />
Corrado Assenza (above right) with co-workers<br />
( from left) Luca Torneo, Reiko Akata and<br />
Corrado Lucci, who has worked with<br />
Assenza for 24 years<br />
HEDVIG ANDERSSON<br />
� GO TO SICILY SAS takes you to Palermo. Book<br />
EKMARK<br />
your trip at www.flysas.com. Use money or your<br />
EuroBonus points, or combine points and money.<br />
Taxes and fees apply. JOHANNA<br />
26 DECEMBER 2012/JANUARY 2013 SCANORAMA
Change language