Almonds are the world's most widely grown and consumed tree nut, and Italy is one of the major producers. Particularly rich in aroma and flavor are those cultivated in sunny Sicily, where almonds are the most widely grown fruit after olives. There are many varieties, all related to prunus amygdalus, and the most praised varieties are Pizzuta, Fascionello Romana, Cavaliera and Bonifacio nº 1.

They can be either sweet or bitter - the sweet ones are widely used in confectionery, while small quantities of the bitter ones give a typical flavor to certain types of biscuits and liquors. Sicilian almonds are harvested in July and the majority of orchards are located in the province of Siracusa, especially around the cities of Noto and Avola.

In Sicily, almonds symbolize good fortune, so it is no surprise that sugar-coated almonds called confetti are a traditional gift at weddings. They are also the leading stars of many local sweets such as biancomangiare, a Sicilian almond pudding, bacioni di Taormina, torrone, amaretti, pasta di mandorle, cassata siciliana or the famous frutta di Martorana, colorful marzipan-based sweets shaped into fruits and vegetables.