The candied fruit among the Agrigento temples of Casa Barbadoro

Beside the Temple of Concordia, the place of worship erected by the Greeks who inhabited Gela in 440 B.C. and considered the best preserved in antiquity along with the Parthenon in Athens among the Doric temples, a narrow, arched path winds along the rock, carpeted and perfumed by rosemary plants. It leads to Casa Barbadoro, the kitchen and forge of gastronomic and pastry talents such as Giulio Bonfissuto, author of the most coveted panettone in the entire Agrigento area. Grown up in Canicattì in the family Desserteria together with his brother Vincenzo, he has created a panettone that espouses all the philosophy and food of Diodoros. This is the name, in fact, of the project that is now well under way, to cultivate all the land in the Valley of the Temples Archaeological Park, recovering the almond, fig, pistachio and olive trees, harvesting capers, saffron, honey, citrus fruits and above all ancient grains, and thus bringing back ancient peasant customs and wisdom. Bonfissuto's December sweet can be tasted right at Casa Barbadoro, between the temples of Concordia and Hercules, experiencing the sensation of being in a citrus grove of taste thanks to the orange candied fruit. A few hundred metres away, right on the side of the hill where the Roman Agrigentum is located, is the actual Giardino di Diodoros: in this hectare and a half of citrus grove, ten very rare qualities of citrus fruits thrive, where even in December, orange snacks are organised, served in silver cups, old-fashioned porcelain services, and juices are drunk curled up on very vintage old sofas. At Casa Barbadoro one can also have breakfast with the contemporary and imaginative pastries of its gifted pastry chefs, while to stay one can perhaps choose the Adler Resort perched on the hill of Siculiana overlooking the wilderness of the Torre Salsa Reserve populated by native birds, which perch on the panettoni made of marl.