![]() It’s also best consumed overlooking the turquoise Mediterranean, but even if you don’t have seaside real estate, the flavor of this iconic liqueur is sure to transport you. Prickly pear liqueur is traditionally consumed cold, in dainty glasses, with an after-dinner panna cotta or soft cheese. The bummer about prickly pears is their seeds. You should be able to peel the skin off, leaving just the fruit. Next, make a horizontal knife slice about of an inch down the skin. There several different species of cactus figs but the most common culinary species is the Indian. Place the pear on a cutting board and take a sharp knife, and cut both ends off. Prickly pear is a genus in the cactus family, Cactaceae. Ambitious at-home cooks can also buy the fruit and make their own versions. Cutting a cactus pear is easy once the spines are removed. It is also known by the name cactus fruit. Opuntia is, in fact, the scientific name of the plant and the pears are the fruits. Those not lucky enough to be in Sicily or Malta can find prickly pear liqueur online or in Mediterranean specialty stores. Opuntia also called prickly pear belongs to the cactus family, Cactaceae. As an homage to their size, and presumably also to the painful spikes that cover them, Sicilians refer to this second crop by the delicate moniker bastardoni, meaning (you guessed it) “big bastards.” These rotund bastards are then harvested, peeled, fermented, and eventually transformed into the iconic liqueur. In Sicily, the cacti produce smaller fruits in August, which are culled to make way for a second crop of larger, fatter fruits that burst into ripeness by autumn. These deceptively thorny plants yield lush fruits. Transplanted to the Mediterranean after the Columbian exchange, the gnarly limbs of prickly pear cacti now lord over Sicilian and Maltese landscapes, forming organic fences between neighboring fields. ![]() In reality, prickly pear, like most cacti, comes from the Western hemisphere and is native to the Southwestern United States and Mexico, where it continues to be a staple food. Known scientifically as Opuntia ficus indica (or fico d’india in Italian), the fruit’s name literally translates to “fig of India.” It’s neither a fig nor from India. The stems, which contain starch, sugar, protein. They are depicted on the state seal of Mexico. The prickly pear’s hue isn’t the only colorful thing about it. Prickly pears were among the ancient plants known by the Indians. ![]() Traditionally made in Sicily, where it’s called liquore da fico d’india, and Malta, where it’s called bajtra, the liqueur is syrupy in texture with a flavor reminiscent of honeydew melon and an alcoholic kick. This entrancing nectar is one of the Mediterranean’s most unique liqueurs, and it comes from an unlikely source: the prickly pear, also known as the cactus fruit. The jewel-red liquid gleams from rows of glass bottles, almost blood-colored fading to a deep maroon. ![]()
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