Frutta martorana

Frutta martorana (also called frutta di Martorana or, in Sicilian, frutta marturana) is a Sicilian marzipan sweet in the form of fruits and vegetables from the provinces of Palermo and Trapani.

Realistically coloured with vegetable dyes, it is said to have originated at the Benedictine nunnery of Santa Maria dell'Ammiraglio, Palermo, known as La Martorana after its foundress, when nuns decorated empty fruit trees with marzipan fruit to impress an archbishop visiting at a season when the trees were not fruiting. It is traditionally put by children's bedsides on All Souls' Day.

See also

• Sicilian cuisine
• List of Italian desserts and pastries

Further reading

• Lilliana Ballina: La frutta martorana. Aurora Books, Santiago de Chile, 1992. ISBN 9509995320.
• Maria Oliveri: I segreti del chiostro. Storie e ricette dei monasteri di Palermo. Il Genio Editore, 2017. ISBN 8894253406, ISBN 9788894253405.

External links

• Martorana fruit Archived 2005-02-27 at the Wayback Machine Commercial page with image

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