Fritters of Algae in Diamante

18.4.2019

VEGAN & FASHION

Diamante is the largest open-air museum in Italy and among the largest in the world. The local fish specialties are excellent, such as the well known “rosamarina”, delicious fritters made with “bianchetto”, a very tiny young fish specimens.

However, today we are talking about any more delicious fritters of… “green alga” commonly called Sea Lettuce, typical of local cuisine in Diamante.

The alga, which has as botanical name Ulva Lactuca, is a sea lettuce, and among the algae is one of the best known species, it is the richest in chlorophyll and is the one that comes closest to terrestrial plants. It is very widespread throughout the Mediterranean, especially the Tyrrhenian side of Mediterranean sea.

THE INGREDIENT: ALGA OF DIAMANTE

The structure of this alga is lamellar and bi-stratified, translucent, thin with a maximum height of 30 cm and fixed to a helical shaped peduncle. It grows on substrates of rocky nature, from tidal areas up to a maximum of about 10 meters deep.

This kind of Alga in Diamante is a seaweed particularly rich in calcium (30 times more than milk), magnesium and minerals, essential substances for the body. It is a must of Vegan food and a beautiful element for dishes design.

The beautiful bright green leaf, although thin, is rather resistant. This makes it versatile in use, being able to be prepared directly raw but also cooked. Sea Lettuce has an intense aroma but an extremely delicate taste. It is suitable for preparing colorful salads, tasty toppings and to garnish any dish.

In Diamante, it is the main ingredient for preparing seaweed fritters or the so called sea “zeppole”.

Preparing by means of such zeppole a delicious appetizer or an aperitif is easy, the most common recipe is a kind of small fritter, made with a simple batter based on water, flour and brewer’s yeast, flavored with seaweed, fresh or dried.

THE RECIPE OF “ZEPPOLE” OF GREEN ALGA

Ingredients for about 20 fritters:

300 g of flour
250 g of water
12 g of yeast (half a cube)
2 sockets of salt
a handful of algae
3 teaspoons of sweet paprika
half a teaspoon of pepper
a pinch of nutmeg
2 tablespoons of chives
peanut oil for frying

To the general receipe can be added ingredients, such as paprika, pepper, nutmeg and chives, which give the fritters a more marked color and a stronger flavor. You, of course, can choose to not add such spices: they will be delicious anyway!

Preparation:

Pour the lukewarm water into a bowl, add the yeast and mix it until it is completely melted, add the sieved flour and mix with a whisk until you get a rather slow batter.
Put the algae (only if you have bought the dried algae) in a bowl with hot water, let them revive for 4-5 minutes, then squeeze and cut them into small pieces.

A QUICK LOOK AT DIAMANTE: THE LOCATION

Turning in the alleys of the seaside village, crossing the narrow streets and passing through the wide squares, the art strikes the eyes of the tourists, immediately. Namely, the walls down the streets are covered with fascinating murals, over 150 works of art painted on the walls of the historic center and of the Cirella hamlet, built starting from 1981 by painters and artists of international renown. The largest mural is found in the square in front of the town, it reaches 50 meters and tells the story of the town.

As soon as you enter the town, you will come across the Lungomare di Diamante, also called Lungomare nuovo, where you can take a pleasant walk enjoying the view of the Tyrrhenian Sea, while enjoying an ice cream or drinking a fresh granita, or you can stop in the ‘wide beach made of pebbles and pebbles, equipped with several bathing establishments.

Continuing towards the old part, you meet the second waterfront, called Lungomare vecchio, or “living room of Diamante”, from here you can observe the whole coast, which in the evening is illuminated by fishermen’s boats with their lamps. In the southern part of the promenade there is then a huge diamond made of stone, symbol of the city. The Beach “of the shark” (so called “spiaggia dello squalo”) is very popular and is located in the heart of the historic center. Although it is not very large, it is the most characteristic, as it allows you to enjoy a splendid view of the island called “Cirella” and of the old town, at the same time.

After so much sea, in a blink of an eye you pass to a green mountain landscape, thanks to La Valva Park, located along the last stretch of the valley where the Corvino river flows. Here it is possible to indulge in long walks, or picnics immersed in the greenery, but also stopping in the tennis courts, volleyball, bowling and soccer fields.

The renowned Chili Pepper Academy is also located in the park.

Come in Diamante, Calabria, and the Mediterranean seaside will welcome you, together with its wonderful diet, allowing you to taste that vegan jewel, so called “Zeppole” of Green Alga!

Greco di Bianco, ancestral wine

17.2.2019

Everyone tasted, once in a lifetime, at least, the liqueur wine, and sweet, which passes under the popular name of passito or malvasia wine.
Even Alexander the Great, a great drinker of raisin wine, seems to have also died from the effects of a solemn hangover (of raisin wine), during a last banquet with his generals in 323 B.C.; further, starting with his death begins the famous Hellenistic age and the historical connubbio between Greek and Roman culture.

It is as saying that passito opens a new era in human culture.

CALABRIAN PASSITO WINE: GRECO DI BIANCO

The grape of passito wines are the so called Mediterranean Malvasias. These grapes are present in different countries and, there, each is always located many kilometers apart from the other. They are unique and rare, each with its own peculiarities. They have an enormous evocative power, and are linked to myths and legends that span a time span of over three thousand years of human history.

All the Mediterranean Malvasias accompany the marvelous voyage of the domestication of the vine from East to West, and the delicious nectar of Calabrian Greco di Bianco is almost certainly the greatest demonstration.

COMMON ORIGINS OF DIFFERENT GRAPES

Some in-depth genetic research has classified our very ancient “Greco di Bianco”, a vine from which the homonymous wine is obtained, like a malvasia. This Calabrian grape was formerly considered as distinct cultivars from the Malvasias of the Lipari, of Sardinia (of Bosa and of Cagliari), the Greco di Bianco (or of Gerace), Malvasia di Sitges, Malvasia dubrovačka (Croatia), the candid white of Madeira (Portugal) and Tenerife (Canary Islands).

Instead, all the mentioned grapes have shown an “identical molecular profile”, they all come from Calabria!

According to prof. Attilio Scienza, University of Milan, it is not known from which specific Mediterranean region Malvasia grapes left, nor what was the chronology of their stages of diversification in the West, but as shown by some DNA sequences, it seems that this vine did not arrive in Spain from Greece, but from Magna Graecia and therefore perhaps from Calabria.

**Vineyards descending towards the sea**

The cultivation of these Mediterranean Malvasias is still today located near the sea, as in Calabria; this shows that their wines were for the compositional characteristics suitable for long journeys and the object of intense trade.

_{^{SMAF LTD}}

Explore our products, coming from CALABRIA. Order the food and beverage products that allow you to explore the Mediterranean diet of a remarkable region. Surrounded by two seas and adorned with pine forests, mysterious villages, natural habitats, and rich biodiversity. Discover handcrafted delicacies that embody the soul of the land: sun-ripened fruits, premium olive oils, bold wines, artisanal cheeses, and traditional cured meats, all crafted with passion and authenticity.

A TRACE OF PAST IN THE GRAPES NAME: MALVASIA

In the past there was a lot of confusion between the Malvasia wine and the Greek wines, very similar for the organoleptic characteristics of the wine, as evidenced by the synonymy of Malvasia with Greco di Bianco or Gerace, the only one among the group’s vine varieties in all likelihood, to Greek colonization. In Dalmatia and in Spain it arrived in the Middle Ages to emulate the Venetian malvasias.

A solution of the problem can be found in the history of the name “Malvasia”, as it follows.

According to some studies the name derives from “Monemvasia”, an old commercial port of Laconia, in the Peloponnese. The first written document of a Malvasia dates back to 1214, when the Archbishop of Ephesus Nicola Mesarites referred to a wine called “Monovasia” or “Monemvasios” together with the wines of Chios, Lesbos and Eubea. The Italianisation and diffusion of this term is linked to an active wine trade in the Middle Ages, especially by the Venetians, who began marketing the Vinum de Malvasias in 1278.

**Malvasia, the grape, and a glass of liqueur**

The name Malvasia referred to the sweet and aromatic wines of Greece (produced in the Peloponnese, in Rhodes, Crete and in the Ionian islands) and after the latter was conquered by the Ottoman Empire, new production centers were created along the sea routes of the Mediterranean. In Italy the first to speak about the various Malvasias was Andrea Bacci at the end of the sixteenth century: in his work he reports that Giulio Cesare Scaligero of Riva del Garda, a humanist cousin him, claimed that the etymology of Monobaticum wine derives from the Greek Monobasiten ( Μονοβασίτήν) term by which Athenaeum of Naucrati (3rd century AD) called a particular wine “the sole basis and foundation of the goodness of all wines”.

TASTE AND HISTORY

The above mentioned hints of history and oenological science are enough to make clear what experience awaits the lucky drinker of this fantastic sweet and liqueur wine of Calabria, called “Greco di Bianco”.
We wish everyone to drink it in happy company (and at a temperature just below 18 degrees)!