The day of San Martino is one of the most heartfelt celebrations in Sicily, a feast day with ancient origins linked to the production of new wine and above all to the moment known as the "racking".
“A San Martino ogni mustu è vinu": this ancient sicilian proverb indicates, precisely, that for the day of San Martino (11th November), the must, a precious fruit of the harvest completed at the end of the summer season, it has finally finished fermenting and can be "tapped".
On this day, the very long Sicilian summer would also end, which often extends to the first days of November: precisely called "the summer of San Martino".
This definition is linked to the episode that generated the conversion of Martino (a soldier of the Roman Empire, originally from Hungary) to Christianity.
Some sacred texts tell that during a patrol San Martino, seeing a beggar who was in danger of dying from the cold, cut his cloak with the sword to give him half of it, then receiving Jesus in a dream during the night. After the generous gesture, the sky cleared and the temperature became mild.
Upon awakening, the soldier found his cloak intact and decided to convert to Christianity, also becaming the bishop of Tours.
In the best Sicilian iconography, the Roman soldier is reproduced on a white horse, dressed as a centurion, with sword in hand, after having cut his cloak in two parts.
Like any holiday in Sicily, the Feast of San Martino is accompanied by some delicious dishes, which vary in the different provinces of Sicily.
In particular, in Trapani the bakeries are dedicated to the production of "muffoletti", soft fragrant loaves of durum wheat made with a specific dough enriched with wild fennel seeds, and which are then traditionally stuffed with mortadella.
The name derives from the Saxon language "muffin". The tradition dates back to about 800 years ago when King Frederick II brought this recipe to Sicily to better flavor the bread and make it more pleasant for the soldiers, even several days after its preparation.
Also on that day, and only once a year, the bakeries also make the so-called San Martino biscuits, very crunchy, with a rounded shape, enriched with wild fennel, very pleasant to pair with a good "Passito di Pantelleria" or other Sicilian fortified wines.
Finally, there is a version of the San Martino biscuits, softer and larger in size, stuffed inside with a fine sheep ricotta cream, also called "Sammartinelli".
What is certain is that in Sicily every occasion is good to enjoy a good traditional dish.
