[Sca-cooks] Re: Cioccolato di modica

[Christiane]

From: "Elise Fleming" <alysk at ix.netcom.com>
Subject: [Sca-cooks] Re: Cioccolato di Modica
To: "sca-cooks at ansteorra.org" <sca-cooks at ansteorra.org>
Message-ID: <410-220051319214048750 at ix.netcom.com>
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Gianotta wrote:
>In researching my rebuttal I came across mentions of chocolate 
>made in Modica, Sicily. (snip) Allegedly chocolate-making came 
>to Modica when the town was under Spanish rule in the 16th century.

What's the source for this?  Is it primary or secondary or...?  Sorry if an
answer's already been posted.  I get the digest.

Alys Katharine

=================================================
I say "allegedly" because I obtained info from various Websites.

Here is the one for the Antica Dolceria Bonajuto Website, a shop started in 1880:

http://www.bonajuto.it/_bonajut2.html

All the chocolate makers of Modica (the county, not just the city) claim that Modican chocolate is "created according to a very ancient method that has been handed on for centuries among families of confectioners in the County of Modica."

Modica was the seat of Spanish domination in Sicily. Here is an article about chocolate from one of the tourism Websites, with photos:
http://www.copai.it/ing/articoli/cioccolata-modicana.htm

Something from the University of Masschusetts about Sicilian food that mentions Modican chocolate:

http://www.umass.edu/journal/sicilyprogram/sicilianfoodhistory.html

Outside of Modica, this chocolate was not known, it seems. 

Gianotta (off to order some Modica chocolate from Amazon.com)