Bronte's Pistachio

The Fruit

The green pistachio of Bronte could very well be the emblem of the city: its longevity and resistance, the tenacity to survive against all adversities, even to bear fruits although growing on arid lava rocks reflects, on the long run, many characteristics of the brontese people.

A people  who is not afraid of work and toil, that has always fought to bring home something: that on the pistachio has accumulated wealth, culture and traditions but also respect  for the territory in which they live.

The pistachio fruits, reunited in clusters,  are egg-shaped with dimen­sions similar to olives and of a reddish color that ripening becomes reddish - green or rosy-white or yellow - cream.

Has a subtle skin that  crumbles easily, a long and narrow husk  and a unique, aromatic and light-green  seed.

When it is eaten fresh, the taste of the fruit is extremely pleasant.

The various phases of development of the brontese pistachio, from flower to fruit and some stages of ripening. The period goes from May to September. The picking, every two years, is done during the first weeks in September of the uneven years.
 

A rich and valuable fruit

A Bronte's green pistachio is not only rich of high level nutritional substances, but also contains several active principles used in the medical field.

The activity anti-radicalizing of its substances is applied in many pathologies as heart deceases, ar­te­riosclerosis, some types of de­men­tia, included the Alzheimer decease, and to ameliorate the qua­lity of life while ageing and du­ring chronic deceases.

Rich of proteins and fats the pistachio seed, among all dried fruits,  assures the greatest  caloric contribution: 683 kilocalories against 649 of the walnut, the 542 of almond, or the  571 of the peanut.

On average contains more than 20% of proteins, 50/60% of oil (68% of  oleic acid, 17/19% of  linseed oil, 12% of palm oil), and again sugars, particularly glucose, mineral salts (iron, calcium, phosphor, magne­sium and potassium) and vitamins, in parti­cular the  forerunner of vitamin E.

The oil  extracted from the fruit, is particularly applied in  dermatology for its highly softening and emollient qualities.