Italian meals usually end with some kind of a dessert, be it a crostata or tart usually made with fruit, a dry crumbling cake such as Sbrisolona or something richer like profiteroles, almost all meals end with desserts. These desserts are not always elaborate nor are the portions given out the type that you would see in an American diner. Instead they tend to be somewhat restrained and not quite as sugary as one might expect.
Many times the meal will finish with the ubiquitous biscotti that come from Tuscany and have been replicated throughout the world although the American version is about four times as large as the cantucci you find in Tuscany.
Not all Italian desserts are contained though. La Cassata Siciliana comes to mind. Many meals also end with Panna Cotta or other types of puddings. Another family of desserts are the Ciambelle or large donut like rings.
Here’s an easy recipe for a Ciambella.
Ingredients:
Three eggs
300 grams of sugar
300 grams of fine flour
100 grams of butter
1 packet of yeast
1 cup of milk
Grated lemon rind
Preparation:
Beat the eggs and the sugar together added the melted butter and the lemon rind. Then add the flour, the milk and last but not least, the yeast. Cook in the oven in a buttered and floured pan for about 40 minutes at 350 degrees.
To go with this delicious cake, you can have a semi sweet sparkling wine, such as Asti DOCG made with the Moscato grape or any recioto, passito or late harvest dessert wine. Italy has numerous dessert wines although they are not quite as famous as their dry counterparts. Sweet wines have been somewhat ignored in the past but wine lists are increasing adding variety and many of these come from Italy.
-SG
