#Sicilian sweets

[sciatu]

DOLCI VARI E PIGNOLATA MESSINESE

Non è l’ eccesso d’amore che porta Romeo a uccidersi sul corpo della dormiente Giulietta ? Non è l’eccesso d’amore che spinge il Moro di Venezia a uccidere Desdemona rea di aver tradito il suo stesso amore. Gli eccessi non sono mai visti  come situazioni o eventi positivi. Essere golosi è un male perché l’eccesso di cibo o  dolci porta a disfunzioni nel nostro organismo. Lo stesso  vale anche per il sesso perchè l’eccesso di sesso può porta a decadimento fisico o morale esponendoci ai rischi di malattie innominabili . Non a caso, l’eccesso è visto come il sintomo evidente di un malessere interno, che non si riesce a comunicare e che per questo ci fa scivolare nella solitudine. L’eccesso quindi è sempre riprovevole anche se, a ben notare, la golosità o il sesso, o l’amore danno piaceri equivalenti in quanto portano tutti e tre al piacere fisico, prima ancora che emotivo o esistenziale. Pensavo questo quando mia moglie si è mangiata tutto il vassoio di Pignolata Messinese appena comprata perché, come dicevo, la golosità è un eccesso molto simile al sesso e se ci si butta su uno dei due eccessi, è perché forse manca l’altro o non è abbastanza soddisfacente. Che mia moglie volesse dirmi qualcosa? Non lo so. Nel dubbio ho comprato un altro chilo di pignolata e l’ho messa sul mio comodino del letto, se la vorrà dovrà passare sul mio corpo e allora vedremo se vorrà soddisfare l’eccesso carnale lasciando la pignolata al suo posto o viceversa. Non si sa mai di quale eccesso siamo spinti a saziare, ma l’importante è essere pronti a soddisfarlo perché senza quell’eccesso d’amore che Romeo e Giulietta hanno mortalmente soddisfatto, sarebbero solo una delle solite coppiette di illusi e banali adolescenti.

Isn't it the excess of love that leads Romeo to kill himself on the body of the sleeping Juliet? It is not the excess of love that pushes the Moor of Venice to kill Desdemona, guilty of having betrayed his own love for her. Excesses are never seen as positive situations or events. Being greedy is bad because excess food or sweets leads to dysfunctions in our body. The same also applies to sex because excess sex can lead to physical or moral decay, exposing us to the risks of unmentionable diseases. It is no coincidence that excess is seen as the obvious symptom of an internal malaise, which cannot be communicated and which therefore makes us slip into loneliness. Excess is therefore always reprehensible even if, if you carefully note, gluttony or sex or love give equivalent pleasures as all three lead to physical pleasure, even before emotional or existential pleasure. I was thinking this when my wife ate the entire tray of Pignolata Messinese she had just bought because, as I was saying, gluttony is an excess very similar to sex and if you indulge in one of the two excesses, it is because perhaps the other is missing or not It's quite satisfying. Did my wife want to tell me something? I do not know. When in doubt, I bought another kilo of pignolata and put it on my bedside table. If she wants it, she will have to pass it over my body and then we'll see if she wants to satisfy her carnal excess by leaving the pignolata in her place or vice versa. We never know what excess we are driven to satiate, but the important thing is to be ready to satisfy it because without that excess of love that Romeo and Juliet mortally satisfied, they would be just one of the usual couples of deluded and banal teenagers

[charlesreeza]

Eight desserts I ate in Palermo, Sicily. (If it fits on one plate, it counts as one dessert in my book.) Sweets like these can be eaten at any meal. The first photo shows cakes from a typical Sicilian breakfast buffet at my hotel.

Photos by Charles Reeza

[lupismaris]

If you can don't wait until 9pm to have your first meal of the day you will inevitably find yourself in a fever dream of pantry based cookery possessed by the ancestors and 'tism cravings

[bad-artist-non-historian]

Made Biancomangiare last weekend, and it was a bit underappreciated in the community where I'm meant to share this stuff, so maybe it'll be more appreciated here. I infused it with fresh lemon peels and a cinnamon stick, added some garnishes and it went down fast in my household lol.

[bnnrrb-explore-flickr]

In the tradition of Sicilian, sweets made with almond paste were offered at special occasions. da Barbara Bonanno BNNRRB Tramite Flickr: sweets made with almond paste

[tsuyuki-yuruco]

Cuisine - Sweet and Sour Sicilian Tuna Recipe

Sweet and sour pan sauce and caramelized onions are poured over seared tuna steaks.

[ie9game]

Sweet and Sour Sicilian Tuna Recipe Sweet and sour pan sauce and caramelized onions are poured over seared tuna steaks.

[pane-bistecca]

[tpwk-formula1]

Daniel Riccardo Sicilian crust Red Sauce Ham Lemonade Mt Dew (dom!reader) Yes Dessert

Lee-Lee's Pizzeria Menu

sicilian crust hooking up red sauce rough sex ham "You're so infuriating. Walking around like you own the place and then come back to my room to get fucked properly" lemonade body worship mt dew dom/sub dessert yes served by Daniel Riccardo

Daniel x FWB! reader

TW - riding, dom(kinda reader), more sweet sex than rough, face sitting, praise

WC - 1600+

Y/N POV

"Danny come here," I tell Daniel when he finally shows back from the Paddock well past 2 in the morning.

I was tired, my body was exhausted but Daniel was wired and needed to be doing something I could tell that much.

"Do you want to talk about anything?" I asked Daniel when he crawled into the bed next to me.

He just shook his head and we fell silent for a few minutes just sitting on our phones decompressing from the long day when he finally spoke up.

"Can I ask you something?" Says Daniel making me up my phone down and give him my full attention.

"Of course always," I reply back softly.

"Can you be in charge?" Daniel asks making me raise a brow slightly in confusion.

"In charge of what Danny?" I ask back.

"Like can you like dom me?" Danny asks softly making me smile and laugh a little.

"Why?"

"Cause I wanna be a pillow princess for a day," Danny replies back making both of us bust out laughing before I finally just shrug my shoulders and agree.

"I mean it seems fun," I tell him softly.

"Strip, now," I say after a couple seconds instantly making the atmosphere in the room change. Daniel was staring at me with his jaw dropped in complete shock at the change in my voice.

"I didn't say stare at me. I said to strip now," I tell him again when he made no effort to start stripping. I gently pushed Daniel's shoulder snapping him out of whatever trance he was in and instantly started stripping into nothing leaving him completely bare on top of the white comforter the hotel had provided.

When Daniel was sprawled out on the bed I pulled off my sleep shirt leaving me in just lacey panties I was planning to wear to bed.

I crawled on top of Daniel's lap and bent down to kiss him a few times muttering a few incoherent words before trailing my kisses down his jaw and neck making sure to hit all his sweet spots.

"You're so good Daniel, you deserve the world," I tell him softly while still placing soft kisses around his chest.

With the way that I was bending down over Daniel's body, I could feel his cock getting harder at the praise making me smirk slightly.

"Already getting hard for me I can feel it," I tease while taking just the tip of my finger and tracing from the tip of his cock down to his balls where I grip them into my hand slightly making Daniel hiss.

"I love the sounds you make," I continue teasing while I slowly start jerking his cock off.

"More, please give me more," Daniel whines making me smirk and shake my head no while still keeping the same slow pace that I know is torturing Daniel.

When Daniel was rock hard and even leaking a little bit of precum I release his cock resulting in Daniel letting out a loud whine in retaliation which just makes me smirk more before I slip my panties off taking a few extra seconds due to the weird angle I was at.

Once my panties where off I crawl next to Daniel's body up to his head where I give him a soft smirk before swinging one of my legs over his head so my soaked core was above him.

"I wanna cum two times and then I'll give you want you want," I tell Daniel making him instantly wrap his arms around my thighs and pulling my down so I was seated right on his mouth. Daniel wastes no time in pulling my clit into his mouth making me let out a loud moan.

I lean down slightly and pull Daniel's cock into my mouth sucking on the tip slightly.

I knew what I was doing to Daniel's cock would not be enough to make him cum which had his hips squirming and bucking trying to get more stimulation.

Daniel slipped two fingers into my tight walls and instantly found my G-spot making me moan around his cock.

While Daniel and I weren't technically lovers and just friends we still explored each other's bodies often. Daniel knew how to make me cum in a matter of minutes and I know how to make Daniel cum in a matter of minutes. It was a stupid little deal we made when we were both horny teenagers and now well into adulthood have continued to be each other's person when we are both single. It was nice not having to find a random man to hook up with when I'm in need. I just had to call my best friend and he would be at the door in a matter of minutes.

"Danny," I gasp when I feel my first orgasm approaching making Daniel speed up just slightly which resulted in me cumming all over his fingers and face.

I knew when I moved from Daniel's body his face would be covered in my slick as he has always been such a messy eater.

"Fuck, I need you now," I groan before climbing off of Daniel's face. Fuck the other orgasm I needed Daniel's cock in me right now.

I climb back into Daniel's lap wasting no time in sinking down his cock and instantly start bouncing. I gave myself no time to adjust not wanting to give Daniel anytime for his brain to process the pleasure.

"Fuck," Daniel groans after a few seconds. He was already breathing fast and gripping at my hips helping me keep up the brutal pace that surely would leave me with a bruised cervix but we both needed this kind of fucking right now.

You're so infuriating. Walking around like you own the place and then come back to my room to get fucked properly" I tell Daniel with a smirk making his eyes go wide when he realized what I had said to him.

It was one of the first degrading things he had said to me when we were in the early stages of hooking up and I instantly slapped him in the face not understanding how degrading worked. It was something we had talked about over the years laughing slightly but now in this moment, I could see Daniel's eyes darken in pure lust loving every moment of being my bitch.

"Fuck," Daniel groans, while gripping onto my hips in a bruising fashion. I loved riding Daniel's cock, it was one of the angles that made me feel Daniel all over. Like the way his cock hits all the right places over and over again.

"Fuck, I'm gonna cum," Daniel groans while trying to pull me off his cock to blow his load but I just push his hands away and lean down on Daniel's chest before moving my hips in short but fast thrusts making Daniel whine and still try to push me away but I stayed firm in my position.

"Get up, I'm gonna-" But before Daniel can even finish his sentence he starts cumming deep into my pussy making me start cumming just from the feeling of his cum hitting the walls of my pussy.

When I started cumming I stopped thrusting my hips but made sure to keep rocking my hips to help ride both Daniel and I's orgasms out.

"Fuck, I came in you," Daniel says when we both come down from our highs.

"Are you clean?" I ask a question I already know the answer to.

"Yes, you know this," Daniel replies back while turning on his side and pulling me to his chest so we can cuddle.

"Then it's not an issue," I say simply with a shrug. Daniel just shook his head in confusion but not really question it any further. When we got into adulthood we stopped using protection as much but Daniel had always pulled out per my request but I started birth control about a year ago for other reasons and I finally feel like I've been taking it long enough to feel somewhat okay.

"Fuck, I'm gonna wanna cum in you every time now," Daniel says with a smirk making me laugh slightly.

"That's fine, I'm on birth control now," I tell Daniel making me look at me with pure shock. It had been something I refused to take for years scared of it ruining my body but after being diagnosed with PCOS I knew I needed a bit of help.

"Well, whatever you think is best for your body I will always support," Daniel tells me softly before pulling me in for a slow kiss.

"Thank you," Daniel says after a few seconds of silence.

"For?" I ask back a little confused. Daniel had never once thanked me for sex so I was confused why he would start over a decade later.

"For making life a little easier to live, and being the best kind of distraction," he replied back honestly making me smile and wrap my arms around his neck and pull him closer to me.

"You've always been my favorite distraction. And truthfully I loved every moment of tonight," I reply back making Daniel smile.

"I could tell, I'm definitely gonna let you take over more often, love the way your pussy grips my cock when you ride me," Daniel replies back making my face heat.

"Go on a date with me," I tell Daniel making his head shoot up but a smile across his face.

"I know you were in charge tonight but I wanted to ask you out first," Daniel said with a joking whine laced in his voice.

"Beat ya to it! you had all these years to ask," I reply back with a smile.

"But yes, I will go on a date with you. A real one though, one with the intention of making you more than just my best friend I fuck almost daily," Daniel said.

"Good, cause I don't think I can keep seeing you date shitty woman," I reply back honestly making Daniel smile and pull me in a bit tighter.

[sciatu]

Il Tabellone dei gelati è della mitica gelateria De Luca di Briga Marina

All’interno del bar del sig. Placido regnava il solito caos siciliano dove le regole del buon vivere erano non infrante, ma sicilianamente scavalcate, nel senso che erano accantonate, messe da parte, in quanto fare i furbi e lasciare agli altri leggi e regolamenti, fa parte del codice genetico siciliano . Così essere arrivati prima degli altri non aveva valore se gli altri vi si mettevano davanti richiamando rumorosamente l’attenzione del barista o se chiamavano un barista per nome in quanto suoi cugini, fratelli, compari amici o conoscenti. Per cui, nella bolgia che ne seguiva il sig Placido, proprietario della famosa gelateria, si comportava come un giudice della cassazione ricordandosi chi c’era prima o dopo malgrado i tanti millantatori di permanenze risalenti anche ad un ora prima. Il sig. Placido, serio e preciso indicava un cliente e con il volto freddo e professionale da croupier di casinò chiedeva “Cosa le faccio?” E qui partiva l’elenco di gusti che il sig Placido, rapido e preciso, disponeva ad arte su un cono. D’improvviso qualcuno si fece largo nella calca di golosi. Era un ragazzo alto e robusto che teneva in braccio una bambina che lo stringeva piangendo “No cori i papà non cianciri … scusati, …. la bambina … scusate … non cianciri u papà, chi ora ti cattu u gilatino …” Al suo passaggio la gente prima protestava poi, vedendo la bambina che piangeva si spostava presa a compassione dai lacrimoni che scendevano dai suoi occhi. L’uomo con la bambina in mano arrivò al bancone e il sig. Placido, vedendo il dramma in atto si avvicino chiedendo “Che ha questa bambina? Lo vuole un gelatino? Che gusto vuoi picciridda?” “dicci u papà che gusti vuoi? Senti, senti il signor Placido che gusti ci sono, glielo dica signor Placido” “C’è bacio, gianduia, stracciatella, nocciola, zuppa inglese, caffè, Babà, crema d’arancia, mandorla tostata, pistacchio, setteveli al pistacchio, Rocher, nero fondente, sette veli, fondente all’arancio, amarena, torrone, snickers, parfait di mandorle, caramello salato, nutella, Taormina, fiordilatte, cioccolato bianco, cocco, cedro, fragola, ananas, pesca, bergamotto, melone e gelso. Quale vuoi?” “Quale vuoi u papà, dicillu al signor Placido” La bambina lo guardò spaesata e poi puntò gli occhi annacquati sul sig. Placido. Ebbe un singulto del pianto “Diccillu o signor Placido chi gilatinu voi” Fece il vecchietto sulla destra del padre “prendi il cioccolato che è buonissimo” Suggerì il vecchietto sulla sinistra. Nella gelateria scese un silenzio denso e pieno d’attesa mentre tutti osservavano la bambina come se dovesse dare una terna vincente. Lei guardò il signor Placido e lentamente si strinse al padre e bisbigliò nell’orecchio “Va bene u papà signor Placido pi cortesia, ci pò mettiri un po' di panna su un cono”. Un sospiro di sollievo si allargò nella sala e tutti commentarono felici la scelta della bambina. Con la solita rapidità ed efficienza il signor placido riempi un cono di panna disegnando un riccio sulla punta e lo passo alla bambina. “se lo paghi” Fece il padre allungando cinque euro “lasciassi stare, un pensiero mio alla bambina” Fece il signor Placido rimettendo il coperchio sul pozzetto della panna e guardando la folla davanti a se chiese con la solita professionalità “chi servo?” Si udì un boato di voci e la bolgia nella gelateria incominciò nuovamente.

[charlesreeza]

Eight of the many desserts I enjoyed in Catania, Syracuse, and Noto, Sicily

1 Cassata (ricotta filled torte with marzipan sheath); 2 almond cake; 3 chocolate mousse; 4 raspberry custard crostata; 5 gelato; 6 custard pie; 7 pistachio torte; 8 deconstructed cannoli

Photos by Charles Reeza

[lupismaris]

No restaurant wins me over quite like a place with a charming wait staff that makes an effort for special occasions, throws in a bunch of free treats, and doesn't charge you for cocktails

[najia-cooks]

[ID: Diamond-shaped cake slices arranged into a layered star shape, topped with powdered sugar, with dates and prunes placed around the edge of the plate. Two plates of Italian Christmas cookies are in the background. End ID]

Whole orange cake with sumac and pink peppercorn

This moist, flavorful cake is inspired by Sicilian torta all’arancia (orange cake) and Moroccan مَسْكُوتة‎ ("maskūta"). There is no peeling, zesting, or juicing of oranges required; oranges are added whole, and lend the citrus oils in their peels, the sweetness and flavor of their juice, and the tenderness of their pulp to the final cake.

Maskouta is a wheat-flour-based cake that often comes in orange or yoghurt varieties—this recipe combines both versions. The addition of yoghurt makes the cake incredibly tender, and adds a smooth tartness that perfectly balances the brightness, robustness, and slight bitterness of the citrus oils that infuse the cake. Cardamom and orange blossom water, both occasional additions in Moroccan orange cakes, add delicate aromatics that further round out the flavor of the cake; sumac and pink peppercorn add a sour, fizzling touch that draws the brightness of the orange to a head at the front of the palate.

Recipe under the cut!

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Ingredients:

2 whole organic oranges

1 3/4 cup (210g) flour

1 1/2 tsp sumac

3/4 tsp pink peppercorn

6 green cardamom pods

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp kosher salt

2 tsp orange blossom water

3 Tbsp olive oil

1/3 cup non-dairy yoghurt

1/2 cup non-dairy margarine, softened

1 cup vegetarian granulated sugar

Sicilian and Moroccan orange cakes do not usually include butter; however, I find that a creaming method, which incorporates air into a solid fat such as margarine, helps replace some of the leavening power of whipped eggs.

Instructions:

1. Scrub oranges thoroughly. Submerge them in cool water (weighing them down with a plate) and soak overnight.

This step removes some of the bitterness of the orange peels. If you don't have time for soaking, or if you very much dislike any amount of bitterness in sweets, zest the oranges by taking off just the orange layer of the peel with a microplane or vegetable peeler; set zest aside. Remove as much of the white pith as you can and discard. Use the zest and the peeled orange slices in place of the whole oranges.

2. Remove oranges from water. Blend them, along with orange blossom water, until homogenous. The mixture does not need to be completely liquid.

3. Toast cardamom pods and pink peppercorns in a dry skillet on medium heat until fragrant. Grind in a spice mill, or with a mortar and pestle. Combine dry ingredients (spices, flour, salt, baking powder, and baking soda) in a mixing bowl.

3. Cream margarine in a large mixing bowl with an electric hand mixer for 30 seconds, until fluffy. Add sugar and cream for 2 minutes, until aerated.

3. Gradually add pulverized oranges and fold in. Add olive oil and yoghurt and fold to combine.

4. Slowly add dry ingredients and gently fold until combined. You should get a fairly thick batter.

5. Prepare a 9" x 13" (about 22 x 33 cm) glass cake pan with oil or margarine. Pour in batter and flatten with a rubber spatula.

6. Bake in the bottom of an oven at 350 °F (175 °C) for 50 minutes, or until a toothpick entered into the center of the cake comes out clean.

7. Once cake has cooled, cut into slices and arrange as desired. Top with powdered sugar.

[fanby-fckry]

Spider Family Immigration Headcanons:

(A lot of this is based off of stories from my grandfather about his experience as a Sicilian American immigrant – minus the mob stuff because my family never got involved in that shit when the Spiders canonically did)

They’re Sicilian because I said so

If not Sicilian, definitely Southern Italian

They moved when the twins were fairly young, 5 or 6 years old

Arackniss and the twins have a big age gap, and he spends the whole time protecting and comforting his little siblings

12 year old Arackniss giving grown men on the boat and Ellis Island The Sicilian Stare™️ if they so much as look at Angel or Molly funny

Holding them when they get homesick or seasick on the boat

Even though he’s homesick, too

Arackniss holds his breath when Angel and Molly get their inspections done because he’s afraid they’ll get sent back

But all 5 of them pass and get their papers

Everyone gets their names Americanized on their documents

Angel and Molly don’t really understand it, but Arackniss is pissed

That’s probably why so many of them chose new names after they died. Every spider has three names: one chosen by their parents, one chosen by Ellis Island staff, and one they chose for themself

Henroin learned some English before coming over to prepare to join the work force, but didn’t bother to teach his kids

The twins pick it up pretty quick since they’re so young

Arackniss struggles with it a lot more, and gets bullied in school

Their mom just never learns

They all speak Sicilian at home for the first few years, and eventually move to a mix of Sicilian and English (except for their mom)

Angel and Molly also pick up a lot of other Southern Italian dialects from other kids in school when the teachers aren’t paying attention

Henroin does not approve of this

Not because he wants them to focus on learning English or stay out of trouble, he’s just very set in his ways

They didn’t plan to start running mob opperations in the US, but money was tight and old habits die hard

So Henroin found some old contacts and got the gang back together

They sell moonshine during prohibition, run numbers, and when their operation grow, they get into arms dealing and extorting local businesses for protection money

The kids get recruited for a lot of it

Molly’s great for getting messages or small packages delivered because she’s a sweet innocent little girl and no one suspects her

When Angel gets older, he has way too much fun smashing shit when people are late on payments (vandalism is his passion)

Arackniss gets into a lot of fights at school because of the bullying, and because he throws hands with anyone who messes with his little siblings

When they’re old enough, Angel and Molly return the favor

[latristereina]

“Her mouth was sweet and he gently pulled her down on the bed. She closed her eyes, waiting for him to make love to her and Michael felt an enormous happiness. He had spent the war years fighting in the Pacific, and on those bloody islands he had dreamed of a girl like Kay Adams. Of a beauty like hers. A fair and fragile body, milky-skinned and electrified by passion.”

“He was surprised to find himself so secretive with Kay. He loved her, he trusted her, but he would never tell her anything about his father or the Family. She was an outsider.”

“Michael often thought of Kay, of her smile, her body, and always felt a twinge of conscience at leaving her so brutally without a word of farewell.”

“…it was nothing like the love he’d had for Kay, a love based as much on her sweetness, her intelligence and the polarity of the fair and dark.”

“Kay was silent for a long time. ‘Why do you want me to marry you after never calling me all these months? Am I so good in bed?’ Michael nodded gravely. ‘Sure,’ he said. ‘But I’m getting it for nothing so why should I marry you for that?’”

‘You are the only person I felt any affection for, that I care about.’

“But Kay was grateful. She knew that Michael had done it against all his own inclinations. Had done it because she had asked him to, and that she was the only person in the world who could make him act against his own nature.”

“Kay put her hand on Hagen’s arm. ‘He didn’t order you to tell me all the other things?’ Hagen hesitated a moment as if debating whether to tell her a final truth. ‘You still don’t understand,’ he said. ‘If you told Michael what I’ve told you today, I’m a dead man.’ He paused again. ‘You and the children are the only people on this earth he couldn’t harm.’”

- Mario Puzo, “The Godfather”

“Michael loved her when he met her and he loved her throughout his life and he loves her to this day, even though their relationship was surrounded by a lie. He not only loves her, he admires her.”

- Al Pacino, (x)

“And consequently, as we see him even in his commendatory finery receiving the highest award the Vatican can bestow he…his face is a mirror of his soul that’s ravaged and sickly and very very heartbroken because what he values the most is the thing that he has lost… but he has his children, and his children at this point, I would think to Michael mean everything, his daughter and his son.”

“Although to me, what is about to happen here is the beginning of rebuilding of what really means most to him…I have no doubt that Michael despite the limitations of his Sicilian-American upbringing and how men were supposed to be, how women were supposed to be and wives were supposed to be, he really loved Kay, much as Diane and Al really love each other or loved each other or probably will always love each other… I felt we were dealing with real things in the context of this romantic novel.”

- Francis Ford Coppola’s DVD commentary, (x)

“He would do it for his children, this boy and this girl that was all he had left of his marriage with Kay, which obviously meant a lot to him but which she basically pulled the plug on. She was not going to be married to a man who murdered people and stuff.”

“I saw what Michael had, and thereby understood what he had lost. He loved Kay, you know. Kay represented to him this dream that one day he would be out of it. He would have achieved the goal, which was to one day be totally legitimate. He had promised her that he would do that and somehow he was not quite able to just pull it off.”

- Francis Ford Coppola, (x)

@godfat-her

[armed-with-a-waffle-iron]

I just realised the double meaning of the arc title of the Nightwing/Huntress mini series. The story itself is called "Cosa Nostra". On the one hand, it literally means the Sicilian Mafia, like that's what it's called. On the other hand, "Cosa Nostra" is Italian for "Our Thing", as in Dick and Helena's unique, complicated little thing they had going on, that maybe others don't understand.

Another thing, although this mini suffers from a few Devin Grayson-isms, I think this Sicilian Mafia case was the perfect setting for a bitter-sweet Huntress/Nightwing romance. You're always trapped when you're dealing with the Cosa Nostra because of a tangled webs of intense power structures. Constant no-win scenarios. Lots of parallels to work with to depict a relationship essentially doomed by a certain "line of work" and a certain "code of honour". Credit to Devin, this was a clever, clever story.

Nightwing/Huntress