Inserted into the feast of Saint Anthony (January 17th), cuccìa is a ritual food still preserved by many families.

It is a traditional dish that can easily be adapted into a year-round offering.

From a ritual food—linked to ancient rites in honour of Demeter and Kore (the wheat grain)—it becomes a secular food, now served in local restaurants and beyond.

The finest wheat is selected, reserved for sowing. It is cleaned grain by grain and soaked overnight. The next day, the cooking begins. The process is long and requires attention to prevent it from clumping. Cooking takes at least three hours. During this time, a chickpea soup may be added. Once removed from the heat, it is cooled and plated. It can be seasoned simply with olive oil or alternatively with honey, ricotta, cooked wine, or milk. On the saint’s day, it is eaten and shared with neighbours—once, it was even brought to church.

 

This element has been included in the Register of Intangible Heritage of local interest of the Municipality of Buscemi, as part of Intervention 2 “Activation of the Observatory on the Intangible Cultural Heritage of the Territory through the application of the REIL methodology – Register of Intangible Heritage of Local Interest”, within the”Buscemi Borgo Immateriale” project, funded by the NRRP (National Recovery and Resilience Plan), Mission: Digitalisation, innovation, competitiveness, culture and tourism, Component: Tourism and culture 4.0, Investment 2.1 “Attractiveness of villages.” CUP: I84H22000050006.