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Cakes and Cookies

Spongata cake
Spongata cake, an old Christmas recipe from Emilia
Spongata cake is a recipe from Emilia that has very ancient origins. Signs of its ancestors can be traced to Etruscan, Jewish, and Roman cultures. In medieval times, nuns and monks reworked the recipe. Little by little, and that is the history of all the panspeziale (spice cakes) and panforte of Europe, the spongata cake left…
6 December 2024
Sabadoni
Sabadoni cookies from cucina povera of Romagna and Bologna
Sabadoni cookies are sweet, rectangular-shaped tortelli filled with chestnuts and a handful of other ingredients. They are a typical sweet from the cucina povera of Romagna, which we can find under the same name or under that of chestnut tortelli in an area that also includes Bologna and Ferrara. The name sabadoni comes from saba, the…
7 November 2024
Cocoa and ricotta cake
Cocoa and ricotta cake. About a weekend kitchen project
Stroll through the stalls of one of the food markets that, every Sunday morning, you can find in my neighborhood. I am one among many, the still floppy cotton shopper slung over my shoulder lazily waiting to be filled. I glance at the food the stalls offer, looking more carefully at my favorites. I take…
26 April 2024
Torta dei 5 minuti
5 minutes cake, a typical recipe of Emilia-Romagna
In this gastronomic journey along the Via Emilia in search and rediscovery of familiar memories and flavors, sometimes it happens that I discover little culinary surprises. Recipes I have never heard of, such as the 5 minutes cake or, in Italian, torta dei cinque minuti. Honestly, I was surprised to discover that The Slow Food Dictionary…
8 February 2024
Chocolate panpepato from Ferrara
Chocolate panpepato from Ferrara, the recipe
The panpepato, or pampapato, is a skullcap-shaped cake. Dedicated to the Pope, created in 1580 from an idea of Alfonso II d'Este, the Lord of the city of Ferrara, and still produced both artisanally and commercially. Made from a mixture of cake flour, honey, bitter cocoa, toasted almonds, a mixture of spices (the composition is…
12 December 2023
Marsala and semolina tart with pine nuts recipe
Marsala and semolina tart with pine nuts recipe
Semolina and Marsala tart is a recipe that tastes of family, memories, and pine forest. As a child, I spent all my summers at the seaside. The destination was always the Riviera Romagnola. What changed over the years were the villages where we rented a house for the season. And although I am fond of all the…
22 September 2023
Tortelli dolci di San Lazzaro
Sweet tortelli of Saint Lazarus, a typical Lenten cookie
The sweet tortelli di San Lazzaro are typical cookies of Lent and the city of Faenza, a small town in Romagna that I frequented for a long time with my family. Faenza was the destination of many Sunday walks with my family. I remember the walks in Bucci public garden and merenda with fried crescentine bought hot…
22 March 2023
Raviole of Bologna filled with sour cherries
Raviole of Bologna made with red wine shortcrust pastry
Words that make us feel good should be carried with us always. For instance, my friend Gilla claims that if I want to, I will have a great vegan chef. Thanks to her, I started using new ingredients like peanut butter for making the shortcrust pastry of these Raviole of Bologna.   Gilla's words motivate me to step out…
18 March 2023
Pinza of Bologna. A typical cupboard ciambella
Pinza of Bologna. A typical cupboard ciambella
Pinza of Bologna is a recipe that speaks Bolognese. It is a pantry cake made with a few simple ingredients. It was once a typical homemade preparation that was never missing from the table of Bolognese families, especially those of peasant origin. Pinza and sweet mustard: two typical products of Bologna The recipe for pinza first appears…
17 December 2022
The King's Biscuits, recipe and history of bolognese cantucci
The King’s Biscuits, recipe and history of cantucci of Bologna
The King's Biscuits look like cantucci both in shape and double baking. And just like cantucci, you can serve them at the end of dinner with vin santo and a good story (theirs). The King's cookies are crumblier and softer to the bite than their Tuscan cousins. The dough preparation is straightforward. After combining all the ingredients by…
10 November 2022

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