SMAF Ltd Chocolate figs

9.5.2022

It is no coincidence you smile when you taste “chocolate figs” of Calabria.

See our selection: 100% Italian (from Calabria) figs, fresh chocolate ready to be delivered abroad!

Another “must have” of our authentic Calabrian made in Italy hand made products!

See our procedure of producing Dried figs filled with chocolate, a must of the Calabrian Christmas gastronomy, a gift of Mediterranean civilization to South of Italy, to Italy and to the world (they are very appreciated in London, for example).

Dried figs filled with chocolate in Calabria are donated to relatives and friends, or however tasted during the Christmas holidays, because they can be kept for months, if stored in tin boxes and covered – once dried – with sheets of baking paper.

The traditional preparation period for this typical Calabrese dessert is September, a period of abundant figs. In this way, a delicious idea was devised to preserve and enjoy them throughout the year, even in the coldest months.

PREPARATION OF DRIED FIGS

The figs are cut in half, leaving them united in the narrowest part, that of the petiole. Hence the name crocette, that is the cross-shaped name they take after the filling and pressing. Figs are dried in the sun on special reeds.

A selection therefore takes place because the figs destined for the preparation must all be of the same size. After the selection the figs are stuffed according to tradition with a preparation of sugar and cinnamon, with the addition of walnuts or almonds and orange and lemon peel. They are then pressed manually so that the two open parts of the fig are perfectly matched.

Once the figs are stuffed they are baked and cooked at 200 °C, then the product is sterilized. Immediately after cooking, they are cooled in special rooms and then packaged.

The dried fig crosses are packaged with three different preparations:

  • the first involves the use of almonds for the filling of figs,
  • the second the use of walnuts and
  • the third instead involves covering the product with dark chocolate.

STUFFED DRIED FIGS, COVERED WITH CHOCOLATE

The chocolate-covered figs are real pleasures of gluttony. Serve as a dessert, they cannot be missing from the Calabrian table where figs are an ancient and traditional food.

Figs can be processed in many different ways.

The figs are first cut in half and then filled with a filling:

  • of hazelnuts,
  • cocoa,
  • aromas including carnation, cinnamon and citrus fruit peel.

Everything is mixed with the cooked wine which gives it a unique and particular taste. Finally they are covered in chocolate and packed in 250g boxes.

VARIOUSLY STUFFED FIGS

In the Calabrian tradition we also find the flavored figs, prepared with the fruit that is opened in half leaving the part of the petiole joined, it is usually stuffed and flavored with:

  • nuts,
  • carnation,
  • cinnamon
  • citrus peel (orange or lemon).

ALMOND FLAVORED FIGS

In the Calabrian tradition we also find the flavored figs, prepared with the fruit that is opened in half leaving the part of the petiole joined, it is usually stuffed and flavored with:

  • almonds,
  • carnation,
  • cinnamon,
  • citrus peel (orange or lemon).

They are dried figs stuffed with almonds cooked in the oven, then skewered in sticks alternating the fruits on the right and left. This combination of dried figs and almonds is excellent in terms of nutrition. In addition to the excellent supply of energy and nutrients, thanks to the omega 3 contained in the almonds, the intake of this food product contributes to reducing the bad LDL cholesterol and also thanks to the fiber content there is a mile control of blood sugar levels.

The Lavender Park: a corner of Calabrian Provence

23.02.2022

When one thinks of lavender, one automatically thinks of Provence and its infinite expanses of purple flowers. The plays of light the flowers make with the sun, especially at sunset or sunrise, are one of the most sought after natural beauties by visitors.

Well, in Calabria there is a similar place in the province of Cosenza. Exactly in Campotenese, on the Pollino massif, in a fraction of Morano Calabro.

Spectacular lavender field

Herein, the Rocco family has created the Lavender Park, dedicating themselves exclusively to it, from cultivation to distillation and transformation into cosmetic products.

The initial idea was to look for plants that could withstand the cramped winter temperatures and that would resist under the blanket of snow.

They found out that between 900 and 1700 meters the lavender can survive; the same flowers which in the whole Pollino National Park until the beginning of the two wars guaranteed a flourishing activity and was a source of income for the inhabitants of the place.

The Rocco family tried to understand if it was possible to reproduce it, keeping its genetic properties intact in cultivation. Thus, from eight seedlings, three were selected and multiplied in vitro. Everything started in their labratory, at that precise moment.

Lavender flowers

From 2013 their agricultural property was converted into a botanical garden, exactly a sort of educational farm where you can study the peculiarities of lavender and learn to distinguish its species.

Today, in addition to the native flower that grows freely on the Pollino and which is called Loricanda, more than 50 are grown. Each has different characteristics from the others and is uniquely distinguished.

These 50 types are called simply Lavender (also called “lavelli”), while True Lavender (cultivated) show up a rainbow of colors, ranging from white to all shades of purple.

OTOH, on the Polluino plateau, near the lavander crops there are also random types of medicinal herbs such as thyme, roseate, peppermint, lemon and chocolate.

Lavender harvest

Furthermore, the Lavender Park offers visitors the opportunity to witness the distillation and separation of oil from lavender water.

This is also sometimes used as a soothing agent. The oil obtained from lavender angustifolia is the true essential oil with antifungal properties.

Finally, it is possible to buy lavender-based cosmetic products: natural soaps with drops of oil or with flowers for a scrub effect, scented candles, shelled for the fragrance of cabinets and environments, and herbal teas…

Another breathtaking place in Calabria you cannot miss out…

Lavender flowers