As we learned to prepare Nicoletta’s favourite Sicilian dessert, she was also intermittently checking on her husband setting the table (“he always does this - he didn’t wait for the dishwasher to finish before taking out the cutlery”), making dinner for the evening and texting the boiler man to come and fix a problem with the heating.
It would have been the ultimate scene of everyday domesticity, were it not played out for us in a 16th century Sicilian palace by the Italian duchess of Palma. “Unfortunately, modern duchesses don’t have time to polish their nails,” she shrugged while shoving a tray of rosemary-seasoned potatoes in the oven, brewing us a tea and ordering her husband – Duke Gioacchino Lanza Tomasi, adopted son of Italy’s most celebrated author, Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa – to “just please wait for the dishwasher to finish its cycle.”
This cooking duchess invited us into her palace for a special culinary masterclass spiced with Sicilian history, calling each of us ‘piccolina’ and driving home just how important it is to cook when you’re a ‘mamma’. Her spirit is every bit that of a true matriarch and her fierce energy is enough to dispel any image of a puffed-up aristocrat lethargically lounging on a chaise longue.
Feeds 6
Takes 20 minutes, plus steeping and cooling time
Ingredients
1 watermelon (2½-3kg), flesh deseeded roughly chopped
1 handful of jasmine flowers, plus some for decoration (optional)
75g cornflour
150-200g of sugar, depending on the sweetness of the watermelon
100g dark chocolate chips, or shards of finely chopped dark chocolate
Method
Push your chopped watermelon flesh through a fine-mesh sieve or whizz in a blender until smooth and measure out 1L of juice. If you have extra save, chill and serve with mint for a refreshing drink.
Put the juice in a large bowl with the jasmine flowers and let steep for a few hours, then remove and discard the flowers.
Pour the juice into a saucepan, add the sugar to taste and whisk in the cornflour. Cook over a low heat, stirring constantly until it comes to a boil and thickens. Time 1 minute and remove from the heat.
Pour into a large glass bowl or individual ramekins (or champagne saucers for glamorous presentation!) and let cool. Refrigerate until set and cold.
Before serving, garnish with chocolate chips (so as to imitate the watermelon seeds) and jasmine flowers.
You too can meet Nicoletta, cook in her palazzo kitchen and stay in her beautiful 18th Century home in Palermo - she’s the most wonderful host.
