by Concetta Sultan from Cugini in Cucina Cookbook
Our picnics were not a simple affair, by any means; they were an all-day affair, starting very early in the morning and ending well after dark. We’d all meet at one home, so we could head off together in a convoy of cars, and it wasn’t unusual for there to be over ten carloads. We’d never just meet at a picnic spot like we do these days. Instead, we’d travel together, waiting for each other if someone got lost or had car trouble. In those days, someone’s car breaking down was not at all uncommon and all part of the adventure.
It was so exciting, especially for us kids. We’d swap cars, sit with our favourite cousins or friends, sing and play and have so much fun, even before we’d got there. The destination was usually somewhere near the sea. It seemed to me that seaside picnics made everyone feel very happy. We were Sicilians, after all! The sun, the sea air, fresh fish — a perfect combination.
On a perfect day, we would catch fresh fish with a large net, hanging from my dad’s wooden dinghy. Or maybe mussels, freshly pulled from the jetty’s posts. Usually, my dad and uncle, Biago (Passeri), would free-dive for the mussels, and all of us kids would hang off the jetty, looking down at them in the water.
The fish or mussels would accompany the Sicilian banquet our mums had been preparing for days. We enjoyed dishes like pasta al forno, cotoletti, Italian salad, polpetti and parmigiana, along with favourites such as homemade salami and olives, Italian cheese, pickled vegetables, crusty Italian bread, watermelon, nuts in shells… the list goes on and on. The very long day would be filled to the brim with glorious food and laughter, swimming and games, enjoyed by both adults and kids. I can picture us there so clearly.