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AGIRA · FLAVOURS AND TRADITIONS

Cassatella
di Agira.

A crescent that tells the story of a town.

Look closely, follow the hands that make it and discover a flavour to seek out on your visit to Agira.

Where to taste it
Cassatelle in warm light during the preparation of Agira’s cassatelle.
Photograph by Filippo Anello.

01 / THE PASTRY

A familiar shape. A flavour to discover.

Cassatella di Agira is a crescent-shaped baked pastry with a fluted edge and a dark filling of almonds, cocoa and chickpea flour. Lemon and cinnamon add their fragrance.

Cassatella di Agira, not to be confused with other Sicilian cassatelle, has a sweetness with a bitter note and a lightly grainy filling. Take your time to enjoy the balance, one bite at a time.

Characteristics in the proposed specification

02 / A CONNECTION WITH AGIRA

A tradition passed from hand to hand.

The story of cassatella also lives in the memories of those who watched it being made at home. The specification records producers’ oral accounts of their mothers’ and grandmothers’ recipes, reaching back some seventy to eighty years.

One documented reference is the 1986 Agira pastry competition, which included “Cassatedda”. Ideas about its more distant origins remain separate from these verifiable records.

Connection with the area: the source

03 / HOW IT IS MADE

Three steps before the oven.

01

The filling

Toasted, ground almonds, cocoa, chickpea flour, sugar, water, lemon and cinnamon: the mixture is cooked and rested.

02

The pastry

Wheat flour, sugar, lard, eggs and water form the dough, which is rested and rolled out.

03

The shape

The pastry encloses the filling. A mould or fluted cutter shapes the crescent, ready for the oven.

Ingredients and method in the proposed specification

CRAFT AND TRADITION

The hands behind the cassatella.

Flour on the worktop, pastry, filling and trays at the oven. A photographic journey through the making of Agira’s cassatelle, one gesture at a time.

The making of cassatelle, photographed by Filippo Anello.

A dusting of flour during the preparation of Agira’s cassatelle.
01 / A dusting of flourFilippo Anello
Pastry and rolling pin during the preparation of Agira’s cassatelle.
02 / Pastry and rolling pinFilippo Anello
Filling the pastry during the preparation of Agira’s cassatelle.
03 / Filling the pastryFilippo Anello
The pastry cutter during the preparation of Agira’s cassatelle.
04 / The pastry cutterFilippo Anello
The tray at the oven during the preparation of Agira’s cassatelle.
05 / The tray at the ovenFilippo Anello
Cassatelle in warm light during the preparation of Agira’s cassatelle.
06 / Cassatelle in warm lightFilippo Anello
View all 11 photographs
A dusting of flour during the preparation of Agira’s cassatelle.
A dusting of flourPhotograph by Filippo Anello.

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04 / THE PGI APPLICATION

A name, a place.

Registration application published

On 1 October 2026, Italy’s Official Gazette published the PGI application and specification. The notice provides thirty days for national objections before subsequent submission to the European Commission.

This step does not constitute final European recognition.

Read the official notice

05 / A TASTE OF AGIRA

From the photograph to your first bite.

A stop in town

Our food guide lists places for cassatelle and sweets, with directions. Ask the venue directly about ingredients, allergens and availability.

Find somewhere to taste it

The Cassatella Festival

Plan a visit for the festival: its dedicated page has information about the upcoming edition and the full three-day programme.

Explore the festival