Tortellini Tortellini is a type of
stuffed pasta typical of the Italian cities of
Bologna and
Modena, in the Emilia-Romagna region. Traditionally it is stuffed with a mix of meat (pork loin,
prosciutto,
mortadella), Parmesan cheese, egg, and nutmeg and served in
capon broth (). The etymology of is the diminutive form of , itself a diminutive of (). The recipe for a dish called appears in 1570 from
Bartolomeo Scappi.
Vincenzo Tanara's writings in the mid-17th century may be responsible for the pasta's renaming to tortellini. In the 1800s, legends sprang up to explain the recipe's origins, offering a compromise.
Castelfranco Emilia, located between Bologna and Modena, Tortellini are especially associated with Christmas and other winter holidays, traditionally served as a festive first course during family celebrations.
Agnolini Agnolini is a type of egg-based
stuffed pasta originating from the
province of Mantua (in the Mantuan dialect it is commonly called "agnulìn" or "agnulì"), oftentimes eaten in soup or broth. Agnolini's recipe was first published in (1662) by , a cook at the court of the
Gonzaga family. Agnolini is the main ingredient of soups of the Mantuan cuisine, usually consumed during holidays and important occasions. According to Mantuan tradition, during
Christmas Eve chicken broth with the agnolini alongside other traditional Mantuan dishes such as the agnolini's soup
sorbir d'agnoli, with abundant addition of
Parmesan cheese are consumed. Sorbir, to which red wine is added, generally
Lambrusco, represents the opening to the Christmas lunch.
Cappelletti Cappelletti () are ring-shaped
Italian stuffed pasta so called for the characteristic shape that resembles a hat (
cappello in Italian). Compared to
tortellini, they have a different shape, larger size, thicker dough and different filling. The origins of the recipe, very widespread on a territorial basis, are ancient, traditionally and historically linked to
Emilia-Romagna and
Marche. From these areas it then spread over the centuries, becoming a typical dish in various cities. Some recent sources specifically indicate the area in the Cesena-Ferrara-Reggio Emilia triangle as the place of origin;
Pellegrino Artusi, a native of
Forlimpopoli, in his
Science in the kitchen and the art of eating well, reports recipe no. 7: Romagna-style cappelletti, with ricotta-based filling (or ricotta and
raviggiolo), capon breast or pork loin, to be cooked in capon broth. In Umbria, cappelletti in capon broth are also considered the typical dish on New Year's Day. Unlike Romagna, where the filling is made with cheeses, the Umbrian recipe also includes mixed meat such as veal, turkey or chicken and pork loin.
Agnolotti pavesi , with a Pavese stew-based sauce Agnolotti pavesi is a type of egg-based
stuffed pasta of the
Lombard cuisine served hot or warm, typical of the
Oltrepò Pavese, an area of the
province of Pavia, in the Italian region of Lombardy. or in goose broth. The filling of the agnolotti pavesi is based on Pavese stew. The recipe for this stuffed egg-based pasta is characterized by influences from
Piedmontese and
Piacentino cuisine, characteristics of areas that border the Oltrepò Pavese. The shape of the pasta was based on the Piedmontese
agnolotti, and the filling of Pavese stew is based on stracotto alla piacentina, which is the filling for Piacentino . Piedmontese agnolotti, in particular, differ from the agnolotti pavesi due to the filling, which is instead based on roast meat. Agnolotti pavesi is a typical dish of the
Christmas tradition, and are consumed during celebrations and important occasions.
Capon In
northern Italy,
capon is eaten as a meat dish served on
Christmas Day. This tradition dates back to the Middle Ages, when capon broth was consumed during the Christmas holidays, which were also linked to the celebrations of the
winter solstice. The four capons for the Christmas holidays in Milan were eaten, respectively, on the feast of
St. Ambrose (
patron saint of Milan), on Christmas, on New Year's Eve and on the Epiphany. In
central Italy, the consumption of
abbacchio is common as a Christmas dish, particularly in Rome. In Rome abbacchio is also an
Easter food. This distinction exists only in the Romanesco dialect. The classic Christmas recipe for this dish involves cooking the lamb in a pan, adding chopped sage and garlic and then wine mixed with vinegar.
Panettone Panettone is an Italian type of
sweet bread and
fruitcake, originally from
Milan, usually prepared and enjoyed for
Christmas and
New Year in
Western,
Southern, and
Southeastern Europe, as well as in
South America,
Eritrea,
Australia, the
United States and
Canada. The oldest and most certain attestation of the panettone is found in a register of expenses of the
Borromeo college of
Pavia in 1599. The origins of this dessert probably date back to the 12th century. The name
panettone perhaps derives from
pan del Ton, referring to one of the legends about the origins of this dessert, which was allegedly created by a
scullery boy named Toni in the service of Duke Ludovico. This Christmas cake was particularly appreciated by the writer
Alessandro Manzoni and by the composer
Giuseppe Verdi. Efforts are underway to obtain
protected designation of origin and
denominazione di origine controllata status for this product, but these have not yet been successful. Former Italian Agriculture Minister
Paolo De Castro was known to be looking at ways to protect genuine Italian cakes from growing competition in South America, and exploring whether action could be taken at the
World Trade Organization.
Pandoro Another typical Italian Christmas cake spread throughout the territory is
pandoro, a sweet originally from
Verona, created in 1884 by . Pandoro is today the most consumed Italian Christmas dessert together with
panettone. His recipe was the result of a reworking of the
levà, a dessert with granulated sugar and almonds originally from Verona, to which Domenico Melegatti removed the covering and added butter and eggs to the dough. Traditional versions from Cremona range widely in texture (
morbido, soft and chewy, to
duro, hard and brittle) and in flavor (with various citrus flavorings,
vanilla, etc., added to the nougat) and may contain whole hazelnuts, almonds and pistachios or only have nut meal added to the nougat. Some commercial versions are dipped in chocolate. The popular recipes have varied with time and differ from one region to the next. Torrone di Benevento from
Benevento,
Campania, sometimes goes by the historic name
Cupedia, which signifies the crumbly version made with hazelnuts. The softer version is made with almonds. Torrone di Benevento is considered to be the oldest of its type since it predates Roman times and was widely known in the territories of Samnium. Although originally resembling sticky paste, it now differs only marginally from the varieties of torrone di Cremona.
Abruzzo,
Sicily and
Sardinia also have local versions that may be slightly distinct from the two main denominations from Lombardy and Campania. • Torrone di mandorle (usually eaten around Christmas): blocks of chopped almonds in a brittle mass of honey and sugar. • Torrone di
Bagnara Calabra is a well-known torrone given the designation IGP. The recipe, which dates from at least 1700, includes orange blossom honey (from
Calabria), almonds (from Sicily), egg whites, sugar, cocoa, and essential oil. There are two variations. "Martiniana" is dusted in confectioners sugar; "Torrefatto" is dusted in cocoa powder.
Struffoli From
southern Italy, especially
Naples, but widespread throughout, are
struffoli, a type of deep-fried dough. Known as early as the 17th century, the name may derive from the Greek , which means 'round'. A similar dish is described by
Archestratus, a Greek poet from
Gela, Sicily. It was called
enkris ()—a dough-ball fried in olive oil, which he details in his
Gastronomy; a work now lost, but partially preserved in the
Deipnosophistae of
Athenaeus, which mentions
enkris 13 times, in various
inflected forms.
Panforte Panforte is a traditional chewy Italian
dessert containing fruits and nuts. It is similar to a
florentine but much thicker, or a somewhat like a
lebkuchen. Known throughout Italy, it is a Christmas tradition associated most especially with the
province of Siena. Panforte dates back at least to the 13th century, in the Italian region of
Tuscany. Documents from 1205, conserved in the State Archive of Siena, attest that bread flavored with pepper and honey (
panes melati et pepati) was paid to the local monks and nuns of the monastery of Montecellesi (modern Monte Celso, near
Fontebecci) as a tax or
tithe which was due on 7 February that year. Literally, panforte means 'strong bread', derived from the
Latin , which refers to the spicy flavour. Originally the Sienese called it "panpepato" ('peppered bread'), due to the strong pepper used. The original dessert was composed of wheat flour, honey, spices, dried figs, jam, pine nuts and was flavored with pepper. Currently there are many shops in Italy that produce panforte, each recipe being their own guarded interpretation of the original confection and packaged in distinctive wrapping. Usually a small wedge is served with
coffee or a dessert wine after a meal, although some enjoy it with their coffee at breakfast. In
Siena—which is regarded by many, if not most inhabitants of that city, as the panforte capital of Italy—it is sometimes said that panforte should properly contain 17 different ingredients, 17 being the number of
Contrade within the city walls.
Bisciola Bisciola is an
artisanal Italian sweet leavened bread originating from the
Valtellina valley of
Lombardy. during which time it is an essential component of Christmas festivities. It is also known as
panettone valtellinese,
besciola, and
pan di fich, the latter a name in the
local dialect literally translating as
fig bread. The term
bisciola probably derives from the
Latin buccella (). A legend states that in 1797,
Napoleon was passing through the region and ordered his cook to prepare a sweet using local ingredients. The chewy
biscuits traditionally use
Tuscan millefiori
honey as an essential ingredient in the dough. The cookies were originally imprinted with the image of a horse (
cavalli is the Italian term for horses). The cookies sold today are a gentrified version of a pastry which is traceable to the reign of
Lorenzo the Magnificent (1449–1492), when they were called
biriquocoli. Many hypotheses are associated with the origin of its name. According to the most popular version of the story, cavallucci were served to travelers on horseback as a source of nourishment for long trips. It is served in two versions: the bigger one is consumed during Christmas, like
panettone; the smaller one is eaten as breakfast, along with
cappuccino, like
croissants. Veneziana is butter and flour-based and uses
sourdough as leavening; the smaller version is usually plain, sometimes filled with
custard, while the bigger version contains
candied orange. The history of veneziana is very similar to the history of panettone, which was created around 15th century. This sweet was once eaten during celebrations such as weddings and Christmas, while since the end of
World War II is considered a breakfast food. Buondì, a popular snack in Italy, is the industrial version of veneziana.
Pizzelle '' shaped into a
cannoli and filled with an orange-almond creme
Pizzelle (: pizzella) are traditional
Italian waffle
cookies made from
flour,
eggs,
sugar,
butter or
vegetable oil, and flavoring (usually
anise or
anisette, less commonly
vanilla or
lemon zest). Pizzelle can be hard and crisp or soft and chewy depending on the ingredients and method of preparation. It can be molded into various shapes, including in the tubular shape of
cannoli. Pizzelle were originally made in
Ortona, in the
Abruzzo region of southern Italy. Many other cultures have developed a pizzelle-type cookie as part of their culture (for example, the Norwegian
Krumkake). It is known to be one of the oldest cookies and is likely to have developed from the ancient Roman
crustulum. Pizzelle are also known as ferratelle or nevole in some parts of Abruzzo. Pizzelle are known as ferratelle in the
Lazio region of Italy. In
Molise they may be called ferratelle, cancelle or pizzelle. Mustacciolis are often sold alongside other Neapolitan sweets including Roccocò, raffiuoli, susamielli, and
struffoli at Christmas time. Neapolitan mostacciolis were mentioned by
Bartolomeo Scappi, personal cook of
Pope Pius V as part of his
pranzo alli XVIII di ottobre (18 October lunch).
Zelten Zelten is a traditional
Italian fruitcake from
South Tyrol prepared during
Christmas. It is prepared using rye flour, wheat flour, dried and candied fruits, orange zest and various spices. The name derives from the word
selten, a word in the nearby dialect meaning 'seldom', since it is usually only prepared once a year.
Mandorlato Mandorlato is a dessert produced in the
Cologna Veneta area, typical of the Christmas holidays, produced with four ingredients: honey, sugar, egg white and almonds. The exact date of the invention of this dessert is not known, although it is credible that mandorlato was already known and appreciated at the time of the
Republic of Venice, which seems to have spread the name to
Ottoman Greece. Cologna Veneta (from 1406 to 1797) was considered an integral part of the Venetian possessions. A first reference to mandorlato is contained in Lodovico Dolce's text in 1540. ==
Cinepanettoni==