The Feast of the Immaculate Conception is the day when, traditionally, the Christmas tree is made, but it is not only this: on December 8 of each year the Church celebrates the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary, so as the latter has been preserved from original sin from the first moment of its conception.

Many do not know that the Immaculate Conception has been the Patroness of the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies since 1643 when during the Spanish domination in Sicily, the viceroy Giovanni Alfonso Henriquez de Cabrera proclaimed it as such, and that the institution of the feast of this day by the Catholic church, depends precisely on the cult very rooted in Sicily.

But in addition to being a religious occasion, the day of the Immaculate Conception, there is the "way" at the beginning of the Christmas holidays: between family lunches and dinners, decorations, gifts, customs, and typical food!

The days preceding the Immaculate are decisive, as many cities are embellished with decorations, in honor of the holding of various fairs, markets, parades, and processions.

How to forget to talk about food? The culinary richness of our land is indisputable, and precisely for this reason we will talk about what are the main typical Sicilian dishes prepared for this special anniversary: some of these are the cardi in batter, the baked anelletti, the fried cod, the muffuletta seasoned with oil and anchovies, the cassatelle, the cappiddruzzi or the sfincioni, to be accompanied of course with a good dear and old glass of Marsala.

During the Christmas period, the city of Marsala is surrounded by a welcoming Christmas atmosphere, between decorations of all kinds and Christmas markets; the most common anniversary of the day of the Immaculate Conception is the lighting of the Christmas tree in Piazza della Repubblica, the main square of the historic center.