One thing that will always stop me in my tracks, on my walk-a-bout towns, is seeing plants that produce food I have never or rarely seen before. Being in Italy for the last little while, I have clearly seen how abundantly food grows here. The beautiful bounty of edible plants in Modica is further indication that this arid landscape is lush with life.
Herbs
I see herbs in the grocery stores and at the market, I know they are a used in Italian cuisine, but to see them grown by my neighbours brings me joy.
Walking around Modica Alta and catching sight of creative little gardens, bursting with bright green herbs and other edible plants is wonderful. And the containers are so creative! Cans, ovens, wash buckets, grills, really any container that can be used, is used.
One space in particular, a larger tiled area about half way up the lower hill, has been transformed into an herbal paradise. Here, someone has used the old concrete and stone sinks, to grow a variety of herbs. It is an absolutely beautiful little space, very quaint, with a marvellous view as well.
There are buckets of herbs on the walls, planters of squash, a cucumber growing up a tree and natural rosemary sprouting from the ancient stone walls. Rosemary is everywhere actually. I saw it growing in the wild when I climbed the hillside in Salerno, and I see just as much of it here.
Fruit
Oh my, I do love fruit….so much. These trees around Modica are bursting, literally! Regularly I pass, citrus trees, whether they be oranges, limes, lemons or any other variety that I am unfamiliar with. Just today, I passed a hillside of lemons!
Pomegranates, perfectly ripe and breaking open right on the trees! And Quince! At first, I thought they were apples, but they are fuzzy, not peaches and I’m fairly certain they are big beautiful quince!
Persimmons?? Yes indeed, I saw these today as I walked on a country road outside of the city. This was a first for me, I have never seen them growing au natural!
Cactus fruit? Never seen so many ripe fruits in all of my life. These delicious beauties are rolling down the streets, getting squashed by cars and pedestrians alike. You wouldn’t believe how many are ripe for the picking and absolutely everywhere I look.
We cannot forget the grapes, in absolute abundance right now, everywhere I go I see grapes spilling over rock walls, hanging ripe and heavy from wire fences, dangling from trellises, ready for picking.
Olives & Almonds
The olives. I started my European travels in Malta, where I began seeing the olive trees in early bloom.
Now I am in Sicily, and the beautiful big green olives are huge! If you have never experienced seeing olives grow, it is a beautiful sight indeed. I don’t know how to tell if they are ripe, but I have noticed one thing. When they have dropped to the ground, and have been stepped on or driven over, there is a splat of oil!
I know duh, olive oil, but to see the oil actually come from the olive is a new experience for me.
And almonds? Yes sirree! They have cast their green fuzzy exteriors and are hanging onto the trees for dear life. The ground below the trees is littered. How lovely!
I could talk about edible plants forever. Nature provides for us in abundance here in Italy, and especially in Sicily. There is so much food in and around this little town, I am overwhelmed by the perfectness and realness of life here. This is food at its most basic and pure form, and is a marvel to see for the first time.
