Panettone is a kind of Christmas cake, a sweet … Ranging from fruitcakes and fried sweets with centuries of history to 20th-century creations, here are some Italian Christmas highlights enjoyed from South to North. It’s not Christmas in Italy without the famous pandoro and panettone desserts, but in Abruzzo, the real stars of Christmas are the sfogliatelle, caggionetti and bocconotti.All three of them are filled with grape jam and coated with powdered sugar. Usually there’s a small amount of flour – about 15% – and then all the ingredients are chopped and combined together to form a flat round or rectangular loaf, similar to the flat loaf for biscotti. It’s Letitia‘s take on panettone and an amazing dessert to serve over the holidays. I plan to serve it New Year’s Eve. And if you don’t tell, no-one will know the difference! –Katie Parla Add the perfect holiday touch to your ordinary tiramisu with this recipe! Almost every single town and region throughout Italy has fabulous holiday recipes and many of these have been adapted by Italian Americans and Italian immigrants worldwide. They’re rolled into walnut-sized balls and drizzled with melted dark chocolate: positively luscious! Torrone is a staple after dinner dessert in many Italian homes around the holidays. Cappuccino Biscotti. Let’s end with a quick mention of pastry shops in other Italian cities. It derives from the ‘pan de oro’ created in Verona in the 19 th century to celebrate the first Christmas under the Scala dynasty, and was first patented with the name Pandoro in 1894 by Domenico Melegatti, founder of … See more ideas about desserts, food, italian christmas. They reflect the availability of local ingredients plus the input of acquired new cultural baking recipes. Treat your family to these magical Christmas confections, from a decadent chocolate yule log to sweet sugarplum candies.Not only are these must-make desserts delicious, but many of these recipes are great for holiday gifting, too! Take a look at this flashback to last year’s 2019 Christmas in Rome. Fig and Pistachio Biscotti. My mother brought this special family recipe from Europe a century ago. For decades I've pursued my passion for Italian food and culture through bespoke food tours, hands-on cooking classes, travel tips, walking tours, day trips and weeklong food holidays at charming spots throughout Italy. These are baked in a brownie pan and then cut into squares, and they freeze beautifully.Struffoli (honey-dipped, deep-fried sweet dough balls), a holiday treat originally from Naples, were not part of Michele’s holiday baking tradition although nowadays she says you find them quite frequently in the greater New York area. Nougat is an Italian invention, symbol of celebrations, especially on certain convivial occasions.Apicius also talks about it in “De re coquinaria”, and Tito Livio and Marziale also write about it.Just the great Latin poet, localizes the ancient nougat, in the Sannio area, still very famous for the production of cupedia.. They aren’t only sweet and delicious, they are also super easy and quick to make as well. The traditional desserts of a Christmas in Italy are: panforte – a type of dry cake made of honey, spices, candied fruit and almonds, which is typical for the Tuscan city of Siena; torrone – Italian nougat made with almonds (also called mandorlato), hazelnuts or even peanuts, which can be either very hard or soft. Torrone is a staple after dinner dessert in many Italian homes around the holidays. Holiday baking is one of the cornerstones of the holiday season and many of us have recipes for traditional Italian Christmas cookies and desserts that stem from family and local traditions. Another of her favorite cookie are snowball cookies loaded with nuts and butter, and sometimes known as Mexican wedding cookies.She also made Czechoslovakian Christmas cookies with her mom: a cookie with a lemon and ricotta batter and layers of jam, usually apricot. A few years back one of my sisters gave me a recipe for chocolate truffles. Italian Christmas Tree Cake with Lemon Curd and Limoncello. Michele‘s grandmother made a version of zeppole stuffed with anchovies! Anise Biscotti. In Italian culture, Christmas is a huge deal, and the desserts definitely reflect that! The most popular cake in Italy that you find on every single holiday table is panettone (a tall raisin bread-like cake) and pandoro (a fluffy and tall bread-textured sweet cake). Anthony Masterson / Getty. Pignoli are delicious pine nut cookies commonly eaten during Christmastime. Pignoli are delicious pine nut cookies commonly eaten during Christmastime. The quintessential Italian Christmas cake, Panettone is eaten during Christmas and New Year not just in the homeland, but all over the world. I loved the idea and I’ve adapted the recipe still further to include sweet dried cranberries which makes it a wonderful dessert to serve over the holidays! is an Italian-American blog covering Italian news, culture, recipes, videos, and more! This buttery, Italian bread really is the star of Christmas desserts. Puff Cookies . Sweeten up the holiday season with a selection of decadent Italian desserts from Giada De Laurentiis. The final course is a dessert … When you taste them your mouth is full of a comfy and delicious dark chocolate truffle flavor. Panettone is the traditional Christmas cake of Milan and has become the most common Christmas cake in Italy. Let’s be real. Filed Under: Food & Wine, Holidays, Podcast, Recipes. Michele says you can also now find zeppole, a larger and equally delicious deep-fried sweet dough ball. Cenci can be "dressed up" for any holiday—at Easter, I sprinkle yellow, pink and lavender jelly beans over them, and for Christmas, red and green candy sprinkles give the cenci a festive look. We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. Along with panettone, Pandoro is the most popular Christmas sweet in Italy. From traditional treats like crunchy biscotti to an unexpected take on tiramisu, there are countless options to start baking up today – including a few new Italian ideas for your holiday cookie exchange. I bake my own panettone; here’s the step-by-step recipe. Traditional Italian Christmas food isn’t very dessert heavy, but naturally, there are many sumptuous desserts to choose from. The Christmas holidays are around the corner, and Italian Christmas desserts would make them memorable. Zeppole can be enjoyed all year round, but with there being so many varieties of the recipe, you can change things up and add some of your favorite Christmassy flavours. While we may not have the time to whip up some panettone from scratch, there are plenty of Italian desserts for the holidays that won’t require a full day’s worth of effort! Read about Naples and its great food here, I make a peanut butter thumbprint cookie and put a gianduia chocolate, Cristina Bowerman, Michelin Star Chef Glass Hosteria – Episodes 42 & 43, Pork Sausage and Lentils (Cotechino e Lenticchie), Rimessa Roscioli and the Wine Club – Podcast Episode 41, Traditional Italian Christmas Cookies and Holiday Desserts – Podcast Episode 40, Holiday Gift Guide for the Chef & Passionate Home Cook – Podcast Episode 39. Classic Italian Christmas cookies and holiday desserts, by region (alphabetically): Abruzzo – Parrozzo Basilicata – Calzoncelli Calabria – Petrali Campania – Struffoli Napoletani Emilia-Romagna – Certosino di Bologna Friuli Venezia Giulia – Potiza, Focaccia Natalizia Lazio – Pangiallo Liguria – Spongata di Sarzana Italian Christmas desserts. PANETTONE. Italian Christmas food - the desserts. Nothing says Christmas quite like sweet anise cookies! "Everyone interprets the ‘rules’ of Christmas dinner in their own way. Many Italians grew up eating Mostaccioli cookies around Christmastime! Let us help you get into the holiday spirit with our list of top 10 Italian holiday desserts! Mini Italian Pannetone Cakes I make a small commission on purchases made through links on my website. In Tuscany this cake is known as panforte, and in Siena panpepato because freshly ground black pepper is added to the ingredients.Here in the Lazio region where Rome is located this cake is known as pangiallo. 4. Chocolate chips are not always available everywhere in Italy so instead I make a peanut butter thumbprint cookie and put a gianduia chocolate in the center. Also known as “fig cookies” cuccidati cookies are a very popular Christmas time treat and tradition. The dome-shaped sweet bread fruit loaf contains that special mix of raisins, candied orange, citron and lemon zest. Anginetti, Italian Lemon Knot Cookies. It's the sweetest time of year! Both of these holiday cakes are a typical gift exchanged with friends and family, and usually beautifully packaged, each one more beautiful than the next. Celebrate Christmas like the Calabrese and make some delicious and sweet chinulille this holiday season. They are served in many Italian homes during Christmastime! This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Panettone is a quintessential Italian Christmas treat laced with fruit, citrus and cognac. What is your favorite holiday dessert? Michele did a lot of holiday baking with her mom and one of her favorite recipes is pizzelle made with anise. Struffoli, a classic Christmas Italian dessert, is made of deep-fried little dough balls, very aromatic due to the citrus zest and limoncello then coated in honey and topped with sprinkles, and candied fruit. These delicious cookies have all the flavors of Christmas packed in them. Torrone. Here you will find some of the most traditional Italian Christmas desserts that our Nonne... our Grandmothers have preserved for many generations. In the Genoa area the most popular holiday cookie is anicini, flavored with anise.Chocolate chip cookies are always a favorite during the holidays. 17 Easy Italian Dessert Recipes - Italian Christmas Desserts These make for the perfect sweet treat after a huge Christmas dinner or lunch. Here are the ones she made this year: Abruzzo – ParrozzoBasilicata – CalzoncelliCalabria – PetraliCampania – Struffoli NapoletaniEmilia-Romagna – Certosino di BolognaFriuli Venezia Giulia – Potiza, Focaccia NataliziaLazio – PangialloLiguria – Spongata di SarzanaMarche – Cavallucci di ApiroMolise – Pepatelli di NatalePiemonte – TorronePuglia – CartellateSardegna – Pane di MostoSicilia – Crispeddì di MessinaToscana – Panforte di SienaTrentino Alto Adige – Kipperl all Vaniglia AltoatesiniUmbria – Pinoccata Bianca e NeraValle d’Aosta – Lou MécoulenBiscotti are traditional at Christmas time and I like to add dried cranberries for a festive and tasty variation. Although these cookies are full of flavor and look like they take long to make, they are actually simple to make! The traditional Italian Christmas cake is popular not just in Italy, but worldwide. Giving a panettone or a pandoro is an Italian custom that does not seem to have problems with being exported abroad, but it's not the only one. In Florence, an exceptional panettone is to be had at Pasticceria Giorgio, which specializes in classic panettone and those with chocolate or walnuts. And finally I have to mention a fabulous recipe in Letitia Clark’s new Sardinian cookbook, Bitter Honey: it’s a Saffron Custard and Panettone Pudding. Here’s the recipe for Cranberry Hazelnut Biscotti. It contains all the sweet and citrusy flavors of Christmas! The best and most authentic Italian Christmas Dessert Recipes to help you celebrate Christmas Italian style. Italian Cenci Cookies. She recently tasted a variation on the traditional tiramisù recipe made with biscotti. Happy baking everyone! Pizzelle. Christmas wouldn’t be done right without all of those traditional (and amazing) Italian sweets. With so many different flavours to choose from, panettone makes for the perfect holiday treat and an even better gift! If you continue to use this site we will assume that you are happy with it. What about the rest of Italy? Made in miniature size, it makes for a sweet party favor or holiday gift. These cookies are absolutely delicious and are not very difficult to make! The most famous internationally is panettone. All rights reserved. At the end of the holiday season I usually buy up a few of these just so I can make this French toast recipe. Christmas Dessert Idea: Italian Turdilli Recipe | Sensibus.com on 10 Traditional Italian Holiday Desserts You Need to Try (Recipes Included), How Cake Boss Buddy Valastro Saved the Iconic Carlo’s Bakery – Video , This Italian Cheese Factory Makes Wine-Soaked Cheese , We are giving away a free Italian Horn Keychain. Thirty years ago Melissa’s mother-in-law shared this recipe with her and it’s a nugget-like cookie made with honey, sesame seeds, almonds, cinnamon and orange zest. 5. Italian Christmas Recipes prepared by Italian Grandmas to help you celebrate Christmas Italian Style. Via Stazzo Quadro, 15b - 00060 Roma (Riano). Panforte is a classic of Christmas tables; this traditional Tuscan dessert is a feather in the Italian gastronomic heritage cap. Then the first course follows which is often pasta or a soup. Tina Prestia (tinastable.com) from Bologna often travels around Italy sampling all kinds of delicious foods. It is usually shaped into a pyramid/tree or a wreath. Get authentic Italian desserts in the comfort of your home with these cake recipes, biscotti recipes and more. 8 Classic Italian Christmas desserts Piedmont – Torrone d’Alba Torrone is Italy’s version of nougat, a mixture of honey, sugar and almonds that was already popular in Roman times. Many families usually have favorite Italian Christmas cookies and Christmas desserts that they enjoy during holidays. The second course can be meat- or fish-based, but more often there are more than one second courses. The name torrone means “big tower,” and it probably originates from the Medieval use to build large castle-shaped sweets with honey and almonds. Christmas Recipes prepared by our Nonne - our Grandmas! Not only does this dessert look absolutely beautiful, but it also tastes amazing too. Rosette Christmas Cookies. Learn how your comment data is processed. The small town where I live, Riano, celebrates a Pangiallo Festival on December 8th.One of my favorite cookies is buccellati, a Sicilian Christmas cookie stuffed with dried summer figs.Melissa Bellini, an accomplished Italian American home cook shares her fabulous recipes on Instagram and in videos. Christmas Dessert Recipes Great for New Year Day too!!! These are perfect for holiday parties and make a great sweet gift. Traditionally from Calabria, Susumelle make for the perfect holiday treat. Prices are identical for you, but purchasing through my links helps support my work to bring you great recipes, podcast episodes, culinary and travel information. They are not easy to make and require about two days’ time but they are worth it! We got you covered with our list of 10 traditional Italian holiday desserts that you gotta try! The Italian Christmas dinner includes at least 5 courses. Cucidati, Sicilian Fig Cookies. This collection of authentic Italian Christmas Eve and Christmas Day recipes will help you to plan a holiday just like Nonna. This year why not make it yourself instead of serving the store bought stuff? Nov 11, 2012 - Traditional Italian Christmas Desserts including struffoli, buccelato - fig cake, rainbow cookies, pandoro, panettone, Italian cookies and more. Michele Di Pietro and I shared our Italian heritage Christmas cookie recipes and holiday desserts, plus a few other recipes we love. Read about Naples and its great food here. The lightly sweet, dried fruit-studded dessert keeps well much like fruit cake, making it a popular gift.When you make your own panettone, you can flavor it however you like with your choice of fruit, chocolate chips, nuts, and more. Traditional Italian Christmas Desserts including struffoli, buccelato - fig cake, rainbow cookies, pandoro, panettone, Italian cookies and more. Almost every town in every region in Italy has its own variation on a rich and delicious holiday treat filled with nuts and dried fruit. This delicious fritter is usually stuffed with a custard or pastry cream and it’s typically served on March 19, the feast of Saint Joseph. Find this Italian Christmas dessert recipe right this way. If you didn’t know better you would think you are tasting a chocolate truffle, but these truffles are made from ground Oreo cookies and cream cheese! Sfogliatelle not just Neapolitan. Let us know in the comment section! Learn how your comment data is processed. However, if you’d like to surprise your family with something different this Christmas, then you’re in the right place. These cookies are absolutely delicious and are not very difficult to make! © 2020 Hardcore Italians. The holidays are a time for tradition and for many home cooks, that includes certain classic desserts. No matter how much you have eaten between appetizers, first courses, main courses and various other side dishe, the deliciousness takes over and there is always space for dessert. The following Italian dishes are the types of food my southern Italian family (some of whom are now all over the globe) makes at Christmastime, both Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. Try this light, festive dessert with whipped cream and a drizzle of chocolate 15 mins At Christmas, sweet foods are the masters, appearing on Italian tables and immediately filling all diners with festivity. Pandoro Christmas Tree Cake with Amaretto and Mascarpone Whipped Cream . Best Italian Christmas Desserts Recipes from 8 Classic Italian Christmas Dessert Recipes.Source Image: finedininglovers.com.Visit this site for details: finedininglovers.com Tangy, savory cranberry meatballs are constantly a favored at Christmas dinner and also the recipe can conveniently scaled up for holiday events. The cookies are cut into diamond shapes and they are chewy and delicious! There are also other Christmas sweets that can make you happy, linked to the Italian regions and their customs. The first course is either broth or pasta followed by a second course generally based on meat or fish, followed by dessert,” Giovani Ballarini, anthropologist, president of the Academy of Italian Cuisine, told Italian … It begins with a starter. Dec 9, 2020 - Explore Tracy Roberts's board "Italian Christmas Desserts", followed by 169 people on Pinterest. One of the most delightful breakfast treats imaginable is panettone French toast. This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. She recently shared a wonderful family Christmas cookie recipe, giurgiulena. Pignoli. Is it on our list? Struffoli are delicious deep-fried dough balls coated with honey. Originally published December 16, 2016.