SEAFARING RECIPES

NEEDLE FISH RINGS

Serves 4

1kg small needle fish;approx.250g"semola"flour;parsley;1 lemon;1 glass olive oil;salt.

Gut the fish but do not remove the head.Rinse ,drain and then insert the needle into

the tail to form a ring. Place the flour in a bowl, add a generous pinch of salt and the

chopped parsley and mix well. Coat the fish in the flour and leave for 30 min, turning

occasionally. Fry, a few a time , in hot oil. As they turn golden brown, remove from

frying pan and drain on absorbent paper to remove excess grease.

Place on serving dish, garnish with lemon slices and serve immediately.

SWORDFISH KEBABS MESSINA STYLE

Serves 4

800 g thinly sliced swordfish; 150 g dried breadcrumbs; 1tbls capers; 30 g grated piacentino (or parmesan) 1onion; olive oil; salt; pepper; chopped parsley.

Delicately flatten the slices of swordfishwith a meatpounder and cut in half. Season the dried breadcrumbs with salt, pepper and chopped parsley.

Take three-quaters of the mixture and add the capers (minced) and grated piacentino  (or parmesan), sprinkling with a little oil.Spoon the mixture onto the slices of swordfish,roll

up and put onto a skewer, alternating the rolls with a quarter of an onion.

Moisten in oil and coat with the remaining breadcrumbs. Grill, turning once only, on charcoal or in a very hot oven for a few minutes. Serve hot.

PASTA WITH PILCHARD SAUCE

Serves 4-6

400g bucatini; 600g fresh pilchard, gutted and boned; 3 bunches of wild fennel; 1 tbls raisins;1 tbls pine nuts;1tbls tomato purče;1 onion; 4 salted anchovy fillets;saffron;

lightly toasted breadcrumbs; olive oil; salt; pepper.

Clean the wild fennel and boil in a large pan of salted water.Drain carefully, keeping the cooking water, then chop coarsely and sautč with a little oil. Separately, chop the onion and fry until golden then add the anchovies and tomato purče, stirring with a wooden spatula for a few minutes. Add half the pichards, the wild fennel, raisins, oine nuts and a little saffron. Seasons lightly with salt and pepper and continue cooking for a few minutes, adding a ladleful of the fennel water. Bring the remaining water to the boil and cook the pasta until it is al dente, strain and mix with half the sauce.

Grease a deep oven dish and sprinkle with breadcrumbs, distributing them evenly over the bottom and sides and eliminating any excess.

Place the pasta in the dish , alternating with layers of the remaining sauce and the

rest of the raw pilchards. End with a layer of pilchards. Bake for about 30 min.

Place on serving dish (if preferred) .Serve hot.

SALTED COD MESSINA STYLE

Serves 4

400g salted dried cod; 400 g potatoes ; 4 sticks celery; 1 onion; 100 g green olives; 100 g blak olives; 6 ripe tomatoes , peeled and seeded; 50 g pine nuts; 50 g raisins; 2 tbls capers; olive oil; salt; pepper; chopped parsley (or basil).

Soak and clean the dried fish, then cut into small pieces. Chop onion and fry lightly in a little oil. Add the tomatoes and diced celery, stir for a few moments, and then add the fish and a few ladles of water.

Cover and simmer over a moderate heat for about 30 min.

Peel and slice the potatoes, fry in a little oil and then add to the fish, togeheter with the green and blak olives (pitted), raisins, capers, pine nuts, parsley (or basil) , salt and pepper. Cover and continue to simmer for another 30 min. adding a little water if and when necessary. Serve hot.

SARDINE A "BECCAFICU"

Pilchards ; breadcrumbs; salted anchovies; raisin; pine nuts; parsley; bay leaves; lemon and sugar; olive oil; salt; pepper.

Clean the pilchards, tache away the head and the bone, then open.Toast the breadcrumbs stirring continuously. Put raisin, parsley and anchovies. Mix everything.

Stuff the pilchard and roll up them like small boats in a baking-pan. Put them one next to the other and in the middle put a bayleaf. Srinkle the toasted breadcrumbs, the parsley and the sugar. Put the pan into the oven.