Cassata Siciliana

The form was codified in 10th-century Palermo under Arab rule, when sugar cane and citrus arrived in Sicily and met local sheep ricotta; the marzipan shell came later from the Norman convents (12th–13th c.) that perfected almond paste. The 1873 Palermo pastry chef Salvatore Gulì codified the modern version — creating the candied-pumpkin (zuccata) decoration and presenting his cassata at the 1873 Vienna Universal Exposition.

Form codified in 10th-century Palermo under Arab rule, when sugar cane and citrus arrived in Sicily and met local sheep ricotta; marzipan shell came from Norman convents (12-13th c.). The 1873 Palermo pastry chef Salvatore Gulì added the sponge cake and the green pasta reale shell. Sheep ricotta — not cow's — is load-bearing; nearly twice the fat and a gamy note that stands up to candied fruit.

A green dome under a marzipan shell, sliced to show layered sponge soaked in liqueur, sweetened sheep-milk ricotta studded with chocolate chips, and a top crusted in candied citrus and glacé cherries. Eaten cold in thin wedges. The ricotta should be firm enough to hold its shape against the knife — if it weeps onto the plate, the cheese was under-drained.

Sheep ricotta, not cow's, is load-bearing — it has nearly twice the fat and a gamier note that stands up to the candied fruit. The ricotta is whipped with sugar a day ahead and drained overnight; rushing it gives a watery filling. The green color comes from pistachio paste — the authentic Palermo marzipan is tinted toward a soft pistachio green, the traditional recipes reaching it with a touch of food coloring rather than the lurid dye of commercial versions.