You are what you eat, so eat well.

I may be the only one who never read this great article from Time Magazine. It was forwarded to me in an email yesterday and I wanted to share...
Written by David Bjerklie

A stupendous insight of civilizations past has now been confirmed by today's investigative, nutritional sciences. They have shown that what was once called "The Doctrine of Signatures" was astoundingly correct. It now contends that every whole food has a pattern that resembles a body organor physiological function and that these patterns acts as a signal or signas to the benefit the food provides the eater. Here is just a short list of examples of Whole Food Signatures.

A sliced Carrot looks like the human eye. The pupil, iris and radiatinglines look just like the human eye...and science shows that carrots greatly enhance blood flow to and function of the eyes.

A Tomato has four chambers and is red. The heart is red and has fourchambers. All of the research shows tomatoes are indeed pure heart andblood food.

Grapes hang in a cluster that has the shape of the heart. Each grape lookslike a blood cell and all of the research today shows that grapes are alsoprofound heart and blood vitalizing food.

A Walnut looks like a little brain, a left and right hemisphere, uppercerebrums and lower cerebellums. Even the wrinkles or folds are on the nutjust like the neo-cortex. We now know that walnuts help develop over 3dozen neuron-transmitters for brain function.

Kidney Beans actually heal and help maintain kidney function and yes, theylook exactly like the human kidneys.

Celery, Bok Choy, Rhubarb and more look just like bones. These foods specifically target bone strength. Bones are 23% sodium and these foods are 23% sodium. If you don't have enough sodium in your diet the body pulls it from the bones, making them weak. These foods replenish the skeletal needs of the body.

Eggplant, Avocadoes and Pears target the health and function of the womband cervix of the female - they look just like these organs. Today'sresearch shows that when a woman eats 1 avocado a week, it balances hormones, sheds unwanted birth weight and prevents cervical cancers. And how profound is this? .... It takes exactly 9 months to grow an avocado from blossom to ripened fruit. There are over 14,000 photolytic chemicalconstituents of nutrition in each one of these foods (modern science has only studied and named about 141 of them).

Figs are full of seeds and hang in twos when they grow. Figs increase the motility of male sperm and increase the numbers of sperm as well to overcome male sterility.

Sweet Potatoes look like the pancreas and actually balance the glycemicindex of diabetics.

Olives assist the health and function of the ovaries.

Grapefruits, Oranges , and other citrus fruits look just like the mammary glands of the female and actually assist the health of the breasts and the movement of lymph in and out of the breasts.

Onions look like body cells. Today's research shows that onions help clear waste materials from all of the body cells they even produce tears which wash the epithelial layers of the eyes.

"The news isn't that fruits and vegetables are good for you, it's that they are so good for you, they can save your life."

Viva Sant’Agata!

Last night was the final day of the Festival of St. Agata (from 3rd-5th February), Sicily's largest religious procession that for 5 centuries have been held in St. Agata's honor. We arrived in Catania after ten in the evening to be pleasantly surprised. There was no traffic! Imagine that, Catania with no traffic. We also found a parking place! Then, along with Salvo and Vita, Antonello and I made our way to find St.Agatha.

A few blocks into the city we found ourselves engulfed in a huge herd of people. Amazing! There were vendors selling long devotion candles around every corner, and devotees running around in their white over dresses. For us, this was the best time to see Catania. The night was alive. We have been there for the New Year’s celebrations, but this was nothing in comparison. To see the respect these towns’ people have for their patron saint was amazing. We walked, and walked down streets we had never seen; explored alleys that were all lit up and decorated, and popped into little food stores to grab a bite to eat to keep us going. By the time we left, around the hour of two in the morning, the crowds were still just as strong.

Her remains are transported in an ornate silver reliquary bust, decorated with priceless jewels and she wears the crown of Richard the 'Lionheart'.

Here is “Luminaria” or candle procession where the gilded silver bust of St. Agatha is placed on a silver plated wooden bier and is lead through the town amid shouts of “Cittadini, viva Sant’Agata!” (Citizens, long live St. Agatha!). She is pulled by “I devoti”, those devoted to her.

Here is when the procession becomes a passionate "competition" of resistance of the candlemases. Men of all ages prove their devotion by carrying huge candles before her...

People of the town purchase long candles, light them, and say their prayers. They then offer it to her as she passes by through the streets of Catania.
Here is a picture of the “cannalore” that are paraded through the streets. The “cannalore” are gigantic wooden candelabra decorated with statues of angels and saints, scenes from the martyrdom of the patron saint.

You can see happiness on the faces of the "cittadini" who have spent two intense days with their Saint, but you can also see tiredness and the longing for sleep. However, with their remaining voice they still shout: "Cittadini, viva St. Agata".




Saw dust covered the streets to prevent slipping from all the candle wax...


Yum... It is afterall "Martedi Grasso", Fat Tuesday!

A final observation concerns a gastronomic tradition peculiar to Catania, the “olivette” of St. Agatha. These cakes made of green marzipan and shaped like olives; evoke the memory of another miracle connected to the martyrdom of the saint. At the time of her execution, Agatha bent down to tie her shoe and upon that spot suddenly sprouted a wild olive tree, whose fruit was believed to have miraculous properties and was kept by the people of Catania out of devotion. (I actually didn't see any, so I had to look for a picture..)

In the 'pasticceria's you can also buy the small ricotta and icing sugar cup-cakes with a cherry on top, called St. Agata's titties ('i minni i St. Agata', in dialect)..



It is said that during the persecution of Emperor Decius in 251, the invading Roman tyrant in Sicily, Quintianus, conceived a passion for Agatha, who was of noble birth and great beauty. And when he could not make her consent to his desires, as Agatha was determined to live faithful to Christ, he had her arrested as a Christian. Then, the Praetor gave her the choice of sacrificing to the gods or undergoing torture. When beatings with white-hot metal failed to shake her constancy to Christ, he ordered her breasts cut off. It is said that after she had been returned to prison, the Apostle Peter appeared to her and healed her wounds.The following day she was subjected to new tortures, but an earthquake from Mount Etna shook the town and terrified the people. Whereupon the Praetor, fearing a riot, ordered Agatha to be returned quietly to prison. There, in the town of Catania, she died in “peace”, on February 5th, and her body was taken and buried by Christians.


To this day the saint protects the city and its inhabitants, who turn to her in their moments of need. This long history with Agatha began on February 1st, 252 AD, just a year after the martyrdom of the Christian virgin when a violent eruption was miraculously stopped by holding up a veil that had belonged to the unfortunate girl. According to legend, the veil stopped the flow of lava and mysteriously changed color. Ever since that fateful day, the people of Catania have turned to the protective veil in order to face the menace of Etna. In 1444 and again during the catastrophic eruption of March 8th, 1669 the veil appeared to stop the threatening flow of lava. In 1743, St. Agatha is believed to have saved the people of Catania from the plague, which decimated the nearby population of Messina. In 1886 the saint’s veil, carried in procession, stopped lava yet again at the nearby town of Nicolosi.

Viva Sant’Agata!

Carnevale 2008

Hundreds and hundreds of years ago, the followers of the Catholic religion in Italy started the tradition of holding a wild costume festival right before the first day of Lent. Because Catholics are not supposed to eat meat during Lent, they called their festival, carnevale — which is a Late Latin expression meaning “to put away the meat.” No one has to force us around here to keep up with traditions! Yesterday for lunch, the family was invited to Antonello’s parent’s house. We dined on a hearty plate of handmade "maccheroni al ragù", involtini di vitello and polpette al ragu' (rolled meat filled with cheese and prosciutto, and meatballs cooked in the ragout of the maccheroni), all of which were prepared following the traditional recipies made by his mother. After lunch, Antonello and I visited our friends and family in costume and then paraded around the town streets. The streets were full of costumes, actually children in costumes, but our look was definitely noticed and appreciated. We had a few photo opportunities with passer bys.



We have a lion tamer in the family...

Mario, MariaElena and Alessandro's boy...



We let the secret out with Justina and Anthony...



The "old man" scaring Chiara!!
Mario dressed as the"Red Corsair".

Read about Carnivale in Sicily here.

Costolette d' Agnello

I stopped by my butcher this morning, to pick up some meat for lunch, and little did I know I would find so much more. I came home with some new cuts of meat, and I met a new friend. I met Rosalina, a woman from Giarre who is origanyilly from California. I look forward to getting together with her and her family soon. Enzo, my butcher who owns the shop where people from far and wide travel to pick up his meats, showed me a fresh lamb. So, today on the menu we have Lamb Chops... We enjoyed some fresh artichokes that I bought yesterday, and a plate of homemade pesto. My husband was a very happy man!





INGREDIENTS: (everything by eye)
dried rosemary
dried origano
dried thyme
salt and pepper to taste
4 lamb chops


EV olive oil
minced onion
aged balsamic vinegar (the good stuff)
chicken broth

DIRECTIONS:
In a small bowl or cup, mix together the rosemary, origano, thyme, salt and pepper. Rub this mixture onto the lamb chops on both sides. Place them on a plate, cover and set aside for 15 minutes to absorb the flavors.
Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Place lamb chops in the skillet, and cook for about 3 1/2 minutes per side for medium rare, or continue to cook to your desired doneness. Remove from the skillet, and keep warm on a serving platter.
Add onions to the skillet, (I cooked them in water first to not fry them in oil) and cook for a few minutes, just until browned. Stir in vinegar, scraping any bits of lamb from the bottom of the skillet, then stir in the chicken broth. Continue to cook and stir over medium-high heat for about 5 minutes, until the sauce has reduced by half. If you don't, the sauce will be runny and not good. Pour over the lamb chops, and serve.

Sunday Road Trip: Erice and Trapani

Last Sunday we were off on another Sunday Road Trip, and this time our destination was western Sicily. With my road map in hand, I watched as we passed all the towns on our way towards Palermo. We had wanted to visit Trapani, the place where Antonello spent many months in the Navy when he was younger. Just before Trapani, we decided to follow a small winding road that brought us to the beautiful town of Erice. Located on high ground, overlooking the town of Trapani and the northern coast of Western Sicily, we enjoyed the view from this medieval city, walking through the many charming old stone streets.


An old man told Antonello that during the II World War so many fighter planes thought this piece of land, off the coast of Trapani, was an emerging submarine. As a result, this poor island called "scoglio dei porcelli" was bombed over and over again. (You can see it in the center of the picture.)


On our way down from Erice we stopped to admire the landscape of the Salines, and the city of Trapani from above.


Down by the sea, Trapani is an important fishing port and the main gateway to the nearby Egadi Islands. It was originally named Drépanon from the Greek word for "sickle", because of the curving shape of its harbour.


Here we are at the "Ligny Tower", which is at the farthest point on the penninsula forming the sickle.