Episode 06 Maltese Food and Maltese Festivities

Maltese Platter

Maltese food, Maltese festivities, these are going to be some of the highlights of your visit. Malta has more public holidays – 14 – than most other European countries, plus a whole range of other feasts and festivals. Of course, food is key to most of them and so this episode introduces you to both. We cover the varied culinary offerings, influenced by so many centuries of foreign cultures coming to the island and then look at the equally expansive range of celebration days, religious, national and cultural.

Maltese Food

The Maltese love their food and enjoy lingering over it appreciatively. Maltese food is Mediterranean-based, of course, but also influenced by all the peoples who have settled on the island. The Knights are said to have brought Aljotta, a fish broth, from Provence, there’s a Sicilian influence in timpana – a pasta pie – while the British left behind such delicacies as trifle. There’s an Arab influence in dishes like stuffed aubergines and the sugared almond mix, helwa-tat-tork. Traces of the island’s peasant cooking traditions can be found in Maltese soups and stews, along with Maltese bread, cheeses and vegetables.

Flavours of Malta

Typical Maltese flavours include the traditional ftira, a round chewy loaf with a crunchy outside, Maltese sausage – pork flavoured with parsley, garlic and coriander – and, surely the national dish, rabbit stew or stuffat tal-fenek, ie rabbit pieces cooked in a rich red wine and tomato sauce. As for street food, you can’t miss pastizzi, little pastry snacks filled with ricotta or mushy peas and sandwiches, made like this: split the ftira, spread it with tomato paste, drench it with olive oil and add the filling of your choice, perhaps tuna or anchovies, maybe ġbejna (sheep or goat cheese), Maltese sausage or bigilla (broad bean paste) plus lettuce, olives, basil, salt and pepper.

Many popular Maltese foods are sweet, not least because Malta is famous for its honey. Imqaret is sweet pastry filled with dates and flavoured with cinnamon, cloves and aniseed. Ricotta is widely used, perhaps to fill pastry kannoli, in zeppoli – an almond and ricotta cake – or sinizza, made with sponge, apricot jam and sweetened ricotta.

In the Restaurants

You’ll see lots of rabbit on menus, rabbit stew or pulled rabbit rigatoni, for example and also wild boar stew. A popular dish is stuffed aubergines, where a mix of cooked aubergine, mince, onions, cheese and tomato paste is piled into an aubergine skin and baked. Fish dishes include swordfish and aubergine ravioli and lots of lampuki – swordfish – perhaps served with a tomato or caper sauce, or baked in the oven. Snails are served stewed in wine with onion and vegetables. A Maltese platter can be a good option, that is bread and crackers, plus a variety of little snacks, maybe Maltese sausage, goat’s cheese, bean pate, olives, sun-dried tomatoes and bigilla, a puree of cooked broad beans.

Festive Foods

You’ll see qaghaq tal-ghasel (honey rings) all year round, although they are traditionally made for Christmas. They’re a ring-shaped pastry flavoured with honey, aniseed and cinnamon. Prinjolata is a cake made for Carnival, a lavish mix of biscuit, candied fruit, cream, nuts and chocolate, all covered with Italian meringue and then decorated with chocolate drizzles, cherries and nuts. For Lent, kwarezimal is a cake made with no eggs or fat, but rather ground almonds, sugar and honey, flavoured with orange rind and cloves. Figolla is an Easter speciality – sweet shortcrust pastry with an almond filling, often made in a fish shape, then iced and decorated with silver balls.

Maltese Festivities

Malta has 14 public holidays each year, one of the highest numbers among EU countries and in addition every village has its own Festa, a celebration of a Saint’s Day. There are over 90 every year, mainly in the summer months. They originate in the Knights’ era and today they typically begin with a religious procession, when the saint is paraded from the church and back again, often greeted by applause, confetti, balloons and streamers. The village square and church will be decorated, there’ll be lots of stalls selling food and children’s toys, loud music relayed on loudspeakers and, to finish, a grand fireworks display.

A festa can be rowdy. In the village of Zurieq there are 2 rival saints and 2 festas, one for the Madonna in July and one for Santa Katerina in September. This creates rival groups, as explained on the website Malta Uncovered ‘The Żurrieq youths passionately dedicate odes to their patron saint and occasionally do hurl a few insults against their rival faction. Yet, this hardly ever turns violent or obscene.’

Key Maltese festivities: carnival and easter

Carnival week, just before Lent begins, means colourful parades and processions,
fancy costumes, marching bands and lots of street theatre and masked balls. Edible treats include sugar-coated almonds and the prinjolata cake. Things can get rowdy, but this is nothing new. In 1560, Grand Master Jean de Valette reprimanded his knights for too much revelry. They had decorated their ships in the harbour, indulged in plenty of music and dancing and even invited strangers, wearing masks, on board. A security risk!

10 days before Easter Sunday is Our Lady of Sorrows, when the faithful process through the streets singing hymns, sometimes barefoot or dragging heavy chains tied to their feet. On Palm Sunday, expect to see people carrying palm leaves through the streets and on Maundy Thursday there may be exhibitions on the Last Supper in some churches and a mass at which the priest washes the feet of 12 people who represent the disciples. Some families perform the Seba Visti, visits to 7 different churches, followed by sharing of the qaghaq tal-Appostoli, a ring-shaped loaf of unleavened bread.

On Good Friday, there will certainly be solemn processions led by people carrying large statues representing the story of Christ’s Passion. At dusk, some Christians attend a re-enactment, wearing white robes and hoods and carrying wooden crosses. On Easter Sunday there’s an explosion of celebration and joy as a special mass is said and bells ring out all over Malta. Then there may be a short procession to carry the risen Christ through the town, perhaps followed by a marching band.

more religious celebrations

March 19th, the Feast of Saint Joseph, the patron saint of workers and fathers, is marked by church services, parades and fireworks. June 29th is the Feast of Saint Peter and Saint Paul, the two patron saints of Malta and August 15th is the Feast of the Assumption of Our Lady, one of the year’s major celebrations – think decorations, activities, processions, food, and fireworks. Before Christmas there may be a re-enactment of the Christmas story, with locals dressing up to play the parts, and the high point of the celebrations is the midnight High Mass, followed by a meal which begins at about 2.00 am!

3 National Days

September 21st has marked Independence Day ever since Malta gained independence from the UK in 1964, while December 13th is Republic Day, a commemoration of the day in 1974 when Malta left the Commonwealth and became a Republic. The Queen was replaced as Head of State by an elected President of Malta. Republic Day is celebrated with various festivities, notably horse-racing.

Last in the cycle is Freedom Day which first fell on March 31st 1979, the day the British military presence
withdrew from the island. It was said to be the first time in a thousand years that there had been no occupying forces in Malta. Every March on this date, the Armed Forces of Malta march and a wreath is laid at the War Memorial, followed by a regatta in the Grand Harbour.

September 8th in Malta

This is Our Lady of Victories (or Victory Day), the Feast of the Nativity of Mary and the anniversary of three significant dates from different centuries. On September 8th, 1565, the Great Siege ended as the Ottomans were driven away. In 1800, it marked the capitulation of French troops who, under Napoleon, had been occupying Malta for a number of months. And in 1943, it was the day on which Italy surrendered to the Allies, meaning that Malta would no longer be under threat. On Malta, at least, World War II was effectively over. This momentous day is celebrated with processions, musical performances, fireworks and a regatta in the Grand Harbour as church bells ring out all over the island.

More Maltese Festivities

Important secular festivals include Malta Music Week at the end of June, which ends in a huge free concert in Floriana and Ghanafest, a 3-day folk festival also in June. The Malta Jazz Festival follows in July and at the Malta International Air Show inSeptember there are aircraft, including some from World War II on display, plus displays of parachuting and maybe the Red Arrows and even a fly past by a legendary Spitfire. The White Night (Notte Bianca) in October is an arts and cultural event, when galleries stay open all night and many streets, piazzas, churches and museums become performance venues. It’s celebrated in a lively atmosphere and shops and restaurants all stay open very late too.

Listen to the podcast

reading suggestions

Taste of Malta by Anton B Dougall

links for this post

Malta Uncovered

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Last Updated on January 29, 2025 by Marian Jones

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