Another bit of magic from old Palermo cuisine is panelle and crocchè. Crocchè are fairly easy to understand — they are croquettes, although, of course, they differ from the classic kind, especially in their name. Because of their elongated shape, locals call them cazzilli, which literally means “little penises”.
Panelle, which are often served on the same plate as crocchè, are simple chickpea flour fritters fried in oil. They are very thin, tasty and filling. It is said that long ago, when the sea provided no fish or people simply could not afford it, they were shaped like little fish. They were then fried in oil previously used for fish, to give them some flavour and imagine that a proper fish dinner was being served. They were called pesce-panelli — literally, “fish panelle”.
Sometimes I find it difficult to imagine how people lived and what they ate in the past. One historical source says that panelle and crocchè were originally fried at Christmas as affordable food for poor families. I cannot imagine what they ate on an ordinary day.
Another food created after making panelle and crocchè was called rascature, literally from the verb raschiare, “to scrape”. After the panelle and crocchè had been prepared, the remains of the chickpea and potato mixtures were scraped from the sides of the pots, shaped into small pyramids and fried once again.
And what can be done to make it even more filling? Add bread, of course. Today, one of Palermo’s standard sandwiches is a bun filled with panelle and crocchè. Bread with potatoes and a chickpea fritter! Honestly, I am a fan of crocchè and panelle, but without the bread.