Part of traveling and learning about other cultures involves eating to discover other flavors. I think our trip has no meaning if we don't open our palate to other sensations, so I always recommend trying everything that catches our attention. It's not just about taking photos and shopping.
If we go to Italy It is impossible not to delight in its cuisine, but beyond pizza and pasta there is a sweet world that will amaze us: most typical desserts of Italy They are unparalleled. Let's see what they are.
Tiramisu
Our list of typical Italian desserts is headed by tiramisu. It is a dessert that is as simple as it is delicious, so it can be made easily at home and adapting ingredients, which is even better. It's about a spongy dessert with layers of sponge cake or vanilla beans dipped in coffee, with mascarpone cheese and grated chocolate everywhere.
Mascarpone cheese is sometimes hard to find or very expensive, so cheaper versions are made with regular cream cheese. Other modern versions take the form of a roll or pionono, or there is tiramisu served in small glasses. For every taste. Is iconic among Italian desserts.
Vanilla panna cotta
In summer there is nothing like this soft dessert, which dissolves in the mouth and is sweet and super compatible with any seasonal fruit, although It is often served with a strawberry compote.. It is simply a cooked cream whose recipe is originally from the Piedmonte region.
Cream, sugar and vanilla or expresso essence are beaten and a little powdered unflavored gelatna is added to that cream. Then it acquires more consistency, and that is poured into small molds and placed in the cold. The result is a creamy dessert with a very mild flavor that is usually served with fresh red fruits or strawberry compote. There are many variations.
Cannoli
another classic dessert from Italy. It is a typical, sweet and crunchy pasta, native to Sicily, which is filled with creamy ricotta to which you can add a tablespoon of mascarpone cheese. This makes the filling even more creamy. And some polished fruit, or pieces of chocolate or pistachio....
The dough can be bought but it is also made at home, and it is something so typical of Sicily that is seen in street stalls and at fairs. The truth is that as this dessert from Italy left its place of origin and moved throughout the country, other versions began to appear: with chocolate, with Marsala wine in the dough, with coffee or with cinnamon.
Grandmother's cake
This dessert from italy It is typical of the houses of the country and translates simply as "Grandma's cake or cake". It is a creamy sweet cake which is great as a dessert for a Sunday lunch or for tea. It is so versatile.
Torta della nonna is made of sweet dough with a lot of butter, crunchy, filled with a cream that It is decorated with powdered sugar or icing and pine nuts.
Panforte
This is a dessert born in Siena around the 13th century, something catchy and sweet, because it is made with toasted nuts, dried fruits, honey and many spices such as cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, coriander...
How do you do this typical Italian dessert? Chocolate is melted and honey is dissolved with sugar. The nuts to be used are mixed with flour, and the entire dough is placed in a double frying pan and placed on high heat. Of course at this point it is something that can be bought in any pastry shop and even supermarket.
Today there are many variations, and accompanied with a coffee or a glass of sweet wine. Nowadays, although it has become popular throughout the country, Siena is called the “national capital of Panforte”.
Semifreddo
"Half cold" is the name of this classic Italian dessert that is something like a frozen. It is known that it derives from French perfect and that arrived in Italy sometime in the 19th century. The semifreddo It is made with sugar, cream and egg yolks and the result is a dessert with the consistency of a mouse.
You can add any fruits to that cream, strawberries, blueberries, and elegantly is accompanied with a grout.
Hazelnut ice cream with chocolate sauce
Who can't like this tasty dessert? The flavor of hazelnuts is superb, I think it far surpasses that of walnuts or almonds. And in ice cream it is simply the best.
In Italy This dessert is known as gianduja and it has a certain flavor Nutella, obviously. The recipe includes peeled and toasted hazelnuts, milk, cream, sugar, egg yolks, a pinch of salt and bitter cocoa powder. Add hazelnut liqueur or Frangelico and the highest quality vanilla extract available.
Affogato
My favorite among Italian posts. Seriously, so simple that I always make it at home. It can also be elegant, if you just have a nice glass and a nice spoon. What is affogato? Simply vanilla ice cream or cream with espresso coffee.
An elegant glass glass, a scoop of ice cream, a jug with a tasty espresso and you add the amount you want to your ice cream. You can accompany with some separate or broken amarettis, about ice cream.
Biscotti
Italian biscottis are present in all cafes and I think they are the ideal accompaniment to a good coffee. Are very crispy Italian cookies, with almond flavor, which can even have a side, are like vanillas, decorated with dark chocolate.
Biscotti are also known as nooks and it is a dessert originating from Tuscany, specifically from the city of Prato. Are double cooked, hence how crunchy and dry they are, and they are usually dipped in Vin Santo, a wine made with Malvasia and Trebbiano or Sangiovese grapes, resulting in a rosé wine.
The original recipe uses flour, sugar, eggs, pine nuts and almonds that are not toasted or peeled. No butter or oil or milk, so there is one barely moist dough which is cooked twice, once in the shape of an ingot and another, after that, in which it is cut into slices. This second cooking is what will define how hard the biscotti will be.
Zabaione and cassata
To the first of these Italian desserts It is also known as zabaglione and can be served hot or cold. It is a dessert that is made with egg yolks that are beaten together with sugar and sweet wine, generally Marsala wine, until they are airy and light. The zabaione It has been prepared in Italy since the 15th century and it's super popular, whether served as a dessert with fruits or bicottis, or as a ice cream flavor.
By your side, cassata is a Sicilian dessert which can be prepared large or individually, then it is called cassatine. The Sicilian recipe has citrus fruits, almonds and ricotta and it's about fill a cake which is multi-layered with ricotta made from goat's milk mixed with chocolate chips. This is covered with a layer of marzipan and glaze and decorated with polished fruits.
Well, these are just some of the most typical desserts of Italy. It would be difficult for us to make an exhaustive list because considering that Italian gastronomy is one of the most varied and tasty in the world, it would be almost endless.
But the idea is that if you travel you are encouraged to try different flavors. A trip cannot be summarized by what you bought or what photo you took. It must include flavors and also aromas, since they will be the ones that, when you feel them again, will immediately take you back in time and space to relive that moment.