Nicola Fiasconaro

Nicola Fiasconaro Award-winning pastry chef Nicola Fiasconaro can be considered a representative of Sicilian confectionery excellence around the globe. Together with his two brothers, he leads a confectionery company founded in 1953 by his father Mario in Castelbuono, a medieval town located inside the Madonie nature reserve in the province of Palermo. During his career, the period of training at the Academy of Culinary Arts in Sottomarina di Chioggia was pivotal to his profession: it was there that his ‘love at first sight’ for sour dough was triggered. That experience marked the beginning of a great challenge, which turned out being extremely successful: in fact, Nicola Fiasconaro had the ingenious idea to modify the original recipe of the famous Christmas cake Panettone typical of northern Italy and give it a “Sicilian hint”. Today, Nicola Fiasconaro is recognized as one of the most appreciated ambassadors of made-in-Sicily food. Over the years, he has grown passionate for works of art made of chocolate; he once reproduced Bruce Springsteen’s guitar completely made of chocolate, and delivered it to the artist on the occasion of a concert of his in Milan. Rumours have it the singer was literally stunned when he received it. It was Nicola Fiasconaro who was in charge of the pastry buffet for Pope Ratzinger during the pope’s institutional visit to Palermo, and he also made a typical Easter dove-shaped cake named Colomba and presented it to Pope Bergoglio in 2016 and 2018. Other very renowned anecdotes regard when a Panettone of his ended up on the table of pop star Madonna during her last tour in Italy, and when two of his Colomba cakes ‘flew’ to Japan to be given to princesses Masako and Toshi, respectively the wife and the daughter of the heir to the imperial throne Naruhito. Mr. Fiasconaro is often a guest on important television shows where he is invited to describe his love for the art of pastry and for his land. His career has been studded with several national and international awards and recognitions. In November 2009, he received the prestigious Pigna d’Argento international award for the Confectionery Industry, which is assigned to individuals born or active in Sicily who particularly distinguish themselves in their sector. In September 2011, his name was included in the Guinness World Records for having coordinated the best Sicilian nougat makers while accomplishing the longest ever Cubaita (a typical Sicilian nougat) measuring 695 meters and weighing 2,700 kg., which resulted in a spectacular masterpiece that winded through the streets of the historical centre of Mazzarino, a small town in the province of Caltanissetta, Sicily. Christmas 2018 brought about an important co-branding project between the Fiasconaro company and Dolce & Gabbana, a project that gave life to a new line of unique products, giving strength to the specificity of each brand and diffusing all around the world the Italian cultural traditions, mingling them with the uniqueness of Sicilian colours, flavours and styles. In June 2020, in consideration of his contribution to the growth of the social and economic milieus, President of the Italian Republic Mr. Sergio Mattarella bestowed the Order of Merit for Labour on him, one among only twenty-five that year.

Motivazioni del Premio

The City of Alcamo International Culture Award has been assigned to Mr. Nicola Fiasconaro, a talented chef gifted with great creative spirit, for having always shown unconditional love for confectionery, an art that may appear fascinating although it demands sacrifice and fatigue, due to its complexity and where organization is fundamental. With his inimitable creations whose flavour delights the taste and whose beauty astonish the sight, Mr. Fiasconaro has been able to safeguard and enhance the tradition of Panettone by creating a virtuous combination of innovation, crasftsmanship and art. With his commitment to training the youth and disseminating knowledge, he has created wealth in his territory by enhancing Sicilian excellence, thus becoming an ambassador of exquisiteness and deliciousness around the world.

Conferimento Premio Internazionale per la Cultura "Vissi d'Arte Città di Alcamo"