The season of prickly pearsįrom August to Christmas, Sicily produces and export this exotic fruit with four different varieties: the yellow, called sulfarin, the red, known as "sanguine," the white, called "muscarella" and the typically orange, called "moscateddo".The plant's flowering begins in spring, while the fruits grow from the summer period. Here it is cultivated in distinct areas: in the central-eastern area that belongs to the town of San Cono, in the south-west of Etna in the territories of Belpasso, Militello, Paternò, Adrano, and Biancavilla, in the Belice (south-western area), in the municipalities of Menfi, Montevago, and Santa Margherita Belice. The island, after Mexico, is among the world's largest producers of the fruit. In Sicily, prickly pear "shovels" grow spontaneously, providing high-quality fruit with an intense flavor. For a long time, the prickly pear has been a symbol of the Aztec tradition: the importance of this plant and this fruit for Mexicans is such that it even appears in the Mexican flag, under the eagle.The prickly pera is a plant that grows spontaneously, requires little attention, resists drought and aridity of the land. "Tenacious monument of the deserts" was defined to describe the fruit's character, crowned with thorns, which survive the arid and dry desert temperatures. It was born in South America, precisely in Mexico. The prickly pear, however, has much more distant origins than Sicily. Costume derives from the ancient custom of the vineyard owner who gave these sweet fruits to his workers to stop them from overeating grapes during the harvest.
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During the harvest period, it is traditional for peasants throughout Sicily to consume these fruits for breakfast. In no other country of the Mediterranean basin has the prickly pear spread as in Sicily, where it represents a constant element of the landscape and a recurring element on the tables and in the literary and iconographic representations of the island until it becomes almost a real symbol.
Instead, in 827, the Saracens imported it to Sicily when they landed in Mazara del Vallo on Sicily's west coast. This exquisite fruit has arrived in Europe with Christopher Columbus, returning from the Americas. The blades characterize the Sicilian landscape providing colorful fruits, excellent to be enjoyed in many ways: fresh or preserved in brine, pickled, candied fruit, or in the form of jam. Sicily, after Mexico, is the second-largest producer in the world. The prickly pear has become an iconic pant of the Mediterranean basin's landscape, where it has the best climatic conditions to take root and develop.
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