The art of Italian pastry and confectionery is appreciated all over the world
Traditional Italian cuisine is today known and appreciated all over the planet. Among the excellent products, desserts play a special role. Italian Traditions leads you to the discovery of Italian pastry and its excellence. Here we will present the history and the main recipes. We will also talk about some of the best pastry chefs who are operating nowadays in our country and who carry on this traditional art.
What is it?
Pastry is part of the art and culinary culture of Europe. Italy is one of the main countries in which it is practiced and is today a symbol of the excellence of Made in Italy all over the world. The main products can be divided as follows:
- filled pastries
- cakes
- ice cream
- chocolate
- cookies
- pralines
- candies.
Background
If it was only in the last four centuries that Italian pastry and confectionery became widespread, the origins can be traced in ancient times, with its consumption being limited to the richest classes because most of the required ingredients where not within the reach of the vast majority of people whose prevailing condition was that of a life in absolute misery. The first desserts consisted of a development of bread and were served only on special occasions. At the time of the Roman Empire and Ancient Greece the preparation consisted of eggs, wheat flour, honey milk and wine. This preparation was then stuffed with various ingredients including:
- almonds
- dates
- figs
- apples
- nuts
- cheeses.
An important innovation was the introduction of sugar, which allowed producing new types of sweets.
Cakes as they are known today saw their appearance in 1600 but it was obviously with the advent of industrial production that sweets and desserts stopped being reserved for the richest classes and became accessible to all.
The main Italian desserts
There are so many different recipes that are part of the Italian confectionery tradition and that are very popular all over the world. Many preparations are characteristic of certain Italian regions, although today, thanks to their quality, they are consumed everywhere. One of these is the Tiramisù, originally from Veneto and Friuli Venezia Giulia. The dessert is made with ladyfingers soaked in coffee and then sprinkled with cream. This consists of three ingredients:
- mascarpone cheese
- eggs
- sugar.
The desserts linked to some traditional festivals are also very well known and appreciated. Some of these, such as panettone, pandoro and Easter dove, are typical of northern Italian regions. Another important tradition is that of the Neapolitan region. The most famous productions are the babà and the pastiera. If you want to know more about the subject we suggest you read this article too.
A not-so-well-known special delicacy is the sorbet, from which today’s ice cream derives. This in fact has an ancient origin of which we find evidence even in the Old Testament.
The best pastry chefs
Italian pastry has seen many great confectioners throughout its history. Today some of these cuisine artists have become famous not only in Italy but also abroad. This demonstrates how Italian confectionery is one of the symbols of Made in Italy’s excellence. To name just a few, we here would mention:
- Iginio Massari
- Alessandro Dalmasso
- Alfonso Pepe
- Salvatore De Riso
- Roberto Rinaldini.
Iginio Massari
Many of the recipes of the Italian confectionery tradition have regional origins but are now available throughout the peninsula and even abroad. Italian cuisine has always been one of the most appreciated and this also applies to the production of desserts. Now that you know more about Italian patisserie and its excellence, you just have to taste them.