mizchef

posted by admin on Apr 2

Hi, all. Well, this is a holy week for a lot of people, so I’d like to wish those of you who celebrate, a Happy Easter and (a belated) Happy Passover. Both of these holidays are based on religious beliefs, but they are celebrated in grand culinary style.

My family celebrates Easter and I always remember that day as being filled with the sights and smells of incredible food. Two of the traditional Easter main dishes for Italian families are lamb and goat. (I could never bring myself to eat either, but I’ve been told that goat has a milder flavor and aroma than lamb.) Along with that, we would have an array of antipasti (appetizers), pasta (of course), and side dishes.

The antipasti usually consisted of artichoke hearts, mozzarella, roasted peppers, olives, cheeses, marinated mushrooms, dried sausage, Insalata Caprese (tomato and mozzarella salad), salami, prosciutto, and stuffed mushrooms.

The main course was accompanied by such things as mushrooms and peas, broccoli raab,  stuffed peppers roasted potatoes, eggplant parmesan, stuffed artichokes, and various types of bread.

But Easter, like many other holidays, is also accompanied by “signature” desserts. After the last of the meal is gone and people have had time to loosen their belts for a bit, Italians are ready to indulge in the traditional desserts of panettone (big bread), pandoro (golden bread), and especially la colomba (the dove). Panettone and pandoro are also enjoyed at Christmas, but the colomba (sometimes called Colomba Pasquale, or Easter dove) is exclusively for Easter. They’re all fluffy, light, egg-based cakes, but the difference between them is the added ingredients: panettone usually includes citron, candied fruit, and raisins; the colomba usually has only candied fruit and is topped with sugar and almonds; and the pandoro is nothing but cake, but is topped with powdered sugar.

Panettone

The significance of the colomba is a message of peace, the dove being the symbol of peace. In the Catholic faith, it also symbolizes the Holy Spirit. It’s been around for centuries and, consequently, numerous stories exist about the origin of the cake. There are several popular stories, but each is an off-shoot of the other and blends history with romance and folklore.

Pandoro

One version goes that in the 12^th century, Emperor Frederico I, also known as Barbarossa (Red Beard), invaded and conquered the Italian city of Pavia and was crowned King of Italy there in 1154. He demanded that all the virgins of the city were brought to him, after which he’d destroy the city. Barbarossa was known to love dove hunting, so the people of Pavia asked all the bakers of the town to bake a cake in the shape of a dove. Each virgin girl was given a cake to present to the Emperor. After he’d tasted them all, he was so full and satisfied that he softened his position and freed the virgins and let the city of Pavia stand.

A variation on this has the origin at a few centuries before, the 6th, when King

Barbarossa

Alboino was terrorizing Pavia and demanded 12 young virgins (these guys have got to stop with the virgins!). One young woman made a cake in the shape of a dove to symbolize both purity and peace and presented it to the king. The king was so touched by the gesture that he had a change of heart about his decree.

Yet another story tells us that the people of Milan saw three doves fly from a church during Battle of Legnano in Lombardy against Barbarossa. They believed it was this event that sparked their victory over Barbarossa. The Milanesi celebrated throughout the years by eating the Colomba cake, with its delicate texture and golden crust.

Here’s a recipe for a Colomba, from Academia Barilla. Let me know if you give it a try and what you think.

Have a great holiday, everyone. And more than ever…peace.