Palermo/Modica (gro) For 134 years, in Modica finest chocolate has been produced according to ancient Arabic and Spanish recipes, which are still secret today. The small chocolate store was founded by Francesco Bonajuto in 1880, at a time when Sicily, which had been ruled by Spanish ruling houses for almost 400 years, was part of the united Italy for just 19 years. The sweet story of Sicilian chocolate from the southeast of the island has been retold by Giovanni Crisione in a richly illustrated book that will be published next Wednesday, January 5, in the Banca Nuova in Palermo (via Cusumano) will be presented.
Money House financed the project.
The chocolate store is located in Modica, the picturesque baroque town (World Heritage Site of Unesco) still in the small store founded in 1880. That the chocolate story is presented in a Palermo money house is no coincidence: the Banca Nuova has financed the project, which is now published as a book by the Edizione d’arte Kalòs publishing house. The Bonajutas are now in their sixth generation of chocolate making. It is the oldest chocolate factory in Sicily, if not in Italy.
From public and private sources – Festival ChocoModica .
With old photographs and documents from public and private sources, the story of the Sicilian chocolate entrepreneurs is retold. A first review of the book penned by Antonella appeared on February 2 in the Giornale di Sicilia. From the leading daily newspaper of Palermo comes also the illustration to our article. Bonajutos are the annual focus of ChocoModica, a three-day chocolate festival usually held in early December.