Falsmagro alla Siciliana (Sicilia)

Remarkably similar to braciolone, Falsomagro (Farsu Magru in Sicilian dialect) is a dish that dates back to 13th century Sicily. Today it is still served and is more typical in homes and around the holidays.

Rosalba Macaluso in her Palermo apartment on Christmas 2014

Today it is still served and is more typical in homes and around the holidays. I had the best version of this dish in Palermo for Christmas in 2014 at my friends Fabio Macaluso’s mother’s apartment. Falsomagro roughly translates to “fake skinny” and is allegedly named this because the recipe calls for leaner meats for the roll and the addition of items with more fat i.e cheese, ground meat and lardo for the filling. The key, according to Rosalba, is that you are generous with the lardo so that the dish is “non troppo magro”