Palermo prison biscuit factory to provide jobs for young inmates

A training course, and above all the opportunity to learn a trade that will become invaluable when one can finally leave bars and start a new life.: the “Cotti in Fragranza” project in Palermo, At the Malaspina Juvenile Detention Center, it's an extraordinary opportunity for young inmates to avoid wasting their lives unsure of what to do after serving their sentence.

We begin with a cooking class led by renowned chef Giovanni Catalano , and then move on to making biscuits, cakes, and baked goods. Among these is a specialty from "Cotti in profumo": a dry mandarin biscuit called " Buonicuore ," a traditional Sicilian recipe that calls for the late-ripening mandarin from Ciaculli, known as "Marzuddu," because it ripens in March. To make the biscuits, the citrus fruit must be picked, which the students themselves do in an orchard on land confiscated from the mafia and made available by the Jus Vitae association.

The biscuit recipe calls for using only the peels of mandarins, which were then donated to a therapeutic community for drug addicts, where the citrus fruits were transformed into jam . The goal of the initiative is to involve more and more young people and begin marketing the biscuits , which until recently were donated to Caritas centers, where they were distributed to migrants and minors in need. For a few days now, the organizers of " Cotti in fragrance – if you don't taste them, you can't judge them " announced that the biscuits have been available for purchase at two stores in Palermo (Spacciobio and Equonomia) and on the website cottiinfragranza.com . In this way, the project aims to guarantee the young people a period of work during their transition through the Institute, so that, once they leave, they can use the skills they have acquired and find stable employment . Perhaps right inside the Malaspina biscuit factory . The initiative involves the creation of a social enterprise with young people who will have the opportunity to become members of the Rigenerazioni Cooperative and the Don Calabria Foundation, through which they can play a leading role in this adventure.

In February 2025, "Cotti in Fragranza" spawned a twin, and the project's positive results have led to the opening of a new laboratory in Casal di Principe, in the province of Caserta , expanding on the experience born in Palermo. In Campania, baked goods and biscuits are also produced under the "Cotti in Fragranza" brand. Among the products associated with the Campania branch are, for example, the Don Gennarì and Filumena biscuits , created to convey the culture and history of the region through their names.

If you want to know about the products made by the guys at “Cotti in profumo”, take a look at this site.