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Christmas

Chocolate block dessert (Dolce mattone), without eggs and baking
Chocolate block dessert (Dolce mattone), without eggs and baking
At home, it was called chocolate block dessert. However, I only discovered as an adult that in Emilia-Romagna, this dessert is more commonly known as Dolce Mattone (literally, Cake brick). It requires very simple ingredients. It has the aroma and flavor of old-fashioned desserts, the kind our grandmothers used to make. Although in this case,…
Cheese anolini from the picturesque Val d'Arda (Piacenza)
Cheese anolini from the picturesque Val d’Arda (Piacenza)
The recipe for anolini belongs, albeit with differences in shape and filling, to the territories of Parma and Piacenza. This recipe for cheese anolini from Val d'Arda is a variation of the classic anolini recipe from Piacenza and Parma. The Val d'Arda is a picturesque valley in the Piacenza Apennines, crossed by the Arda stream,…
A chocolate and red wine cake
A chocolate and red wine cake. And the book that will be
Never underestimate the miraculous power of a chocolate and red wine cake. And never forget how important it is to create memories and preserve them. This reflection also gave rise to the idea for the book that will be . First, let me tell you about this recipe for chocolate and red wine cake.…
Stuffed capon of Bologna
Stuffed capon from Bologna, a home recipe for special events
The Christmas menu was a puzzle that, year after year, took shape and changed. Some dishes were untouchable dishes and others went in and out of the composition each time. Stuffed capon, in our house, also called galantina, was a Christmas dish of the second group. And if it did not take its place on the Christmas lunch…
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…
Macaroni pie of Ferrara
Macaroni pie of Ferrara (pasticcio di maccheroni)
The macaroni pie, known as pasticcio di maccheroni alla ferrarese, is a traditional dish with very ancient origins. Because of this, it has undergone many modifications over the centuries. The current version combines medieval features with modern reinterpretations. The external shell is a sweet, shortcrust pastry; the filling is made with macaroni seasoned with a white…
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…
Rice bomb (bomba di riso), recipe from Emilia-Romagna
Rice bomb (bomba di riso), recipe from Emilia-Romagna
The rice bomb is a flan. And flan, in Italian sformato, is the name we used to call it at home. It must be said, however, that it is an Emilian rather than a Romagna dish. In fact, each Emilian province has its own version of the recipe. You can find the bomb bolognese, the one from…

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