 | |
| Type | Pastry |
|---|---|
| Place of origin | Italy |
| Region or state | Siena, Tuscany |
| Main ingredients | Anise seeds, almonds, candied fruits, coriander, flour, Tuscan millefiori honey |
Cavallucci are an Italian Christmas pastry made with anise, walnuts, candied fruits, coriander, and flour. They are Sienese in origin, and the name translates approximately to 'little horses'. [1] The chewy pastries are similar to a cookie or biscuit and traditionally use Tuscan millefiori honey as an essential ingredient in the dough.
The pastries were originally imprinted with the image of a horse (cavalli is the Italian term for 'horses'). [2] They are a version of a pastry which is traceable to the reign of Lorenzo the Magnificent (1449–1492), when they were called "biriquocoli". [3]
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. [3] Along a similar vein, another speculation is that postal workers who delivered mail over long distances ate the pastries on a regular basis. [1] Additionally surmised is that these sweets were the usual snack of servants who worked in horse stables of rich Italian aristocrats in Siena, a city which gained its fame for horse racing.
The pastry is often paired with sweet dessert wines, such as Vin Santo, and dipped into the wine before being eaten. [3]
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Tiramisu is an Italian dessert made of ladyfinger pastries (savoiardi) dipped in coffee, layered with a whipped mixture of eggs, sugar and mascarpone and flavoured with cocoa. The recipe has been adapted into many varieties of cakes and other desserts. Its origin is disputed between the Italian regions of Veneto and Friuli-Venezia Giulia. The name comes from the Italian tirami su.
Cannoli are a pastry consisting of a tube-shaped shell of fried pastry dough, filled with a sweet, creamy filling containing ricotta—a staple of Sicilian cuisine. They range in size from 9 to 20 centimetres. In mainland Italy, they are commonly known as cannoli siciliani.
Hungarian or Magyar cuisine is the cuisine characteristic of the nation of Hungary, and its primary ethnic group, the Magyars. Hungarian cuisine has been described as being the spiciest cuisine in Europe This can largely be attributed to the use of their piquant native spice, Hungarian paprika, in many of their dishes. A mild version of the spice, Hungarian sweet paprika, is commonly used as an alternative. Traditional Hungarian dishes are primarily based on meats, seasonal vegetables, fruits, bread, and dairy products.
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A macaron or French macaroon is a sweet meringue-based confection made with egg white, icing sugar, granulated sugar, almond meal, and often food colouring.
Panforte is a traditional chewy Italian dessert containing fruit and nuts. It is similar to a florentine but much thicker and is a little like a lebkuchen. Known throughout Italy, it is an Italian Christmas tradition associated especially with the province of Siena.
Christmas dinner is a meal traditionally eaten at Christmas. This meal can take place any time from the evening of Christmas Eve to the evening of Christmas Day itself. The meals are often particularly rich and substantial, in the tradition of the Christian feast day celebration, and form a significant part of gatherings held to celebrate the arrival of Christmastide. In many cases, there is a ritual element to the meal related to the religious celebration, such as the saying of grace.
Italian cuisine is a Mediterranean cuisine consisting of the ingredients, recipes and cooking techniques developed in Italy since Roman times and later spread around the world together with waves of Italian diaspora. Some of these foods were imported from other cultures. Significant changes occurred with the colonization of the Americas and the introduction of potatoes, tomatoes, capsicums, maize and sugar beet—the latter introduced in quantity in the 18th century. It is one of the best-known and most appreciated gastronomies worldwide.
Ricciarelli are traditional Italian biscuits – specifically, a type of macaroon – originating in 14th century Siena. It is considered one of the signature sweets of Siena, in addition to panforte, cenci, and cavallucci.
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Siena is a city in Tuscany, Italy. It is the capital of the province of Siena. Siena is the 12th largest city in the region by number of inhabitants, with a population of 53,062 as of 2022.
Bruttiboni, also known as mandorlati di San Clemente and brutti ma buoni, is a type of hazelnut or almond-flavoured biscuit made in Prato, Tuscany, and many other cities. These biscuits are made by incorporating meringue, which is an egg white and sugar mixture, with roasted chopped nuts. The biscuits are crunchy on the outside with a soft texture in the middle. As with many other Italian biscuits, their origin is disputed, but they have been made since at least the mid-1800s.
Qurabiya also ghraybe, ghorayeba, ghoriba, ghribia, ghraïba, gurabija, ghriyyaba, or kourabiedes and numerous other spellings and pronunciations, is a shortbread-type biscuit, usually made with ground almonds. Versions are found in most Arab and Ottoman cuisines, with various different forms and recipes. They are similar to polvorones from Andalusia.
Damiano Carrara is an Italian chef, restaurateur and cookbook author who resides in Italy.
Christmas in Italy begins on 8 December, with the Feast of the Immaculate Conception, the day on which traditionally the Christmas tree is mounted and ends on 6 January, of the following year with the Epiphany, and in some areas female puppets are burned on a pyre, to symbolize, along with the end of the Christmas period, the death of the old year and the beginning of a new one. 26 December, is also a public holiday in Italy. The Italian term Natale derives from the Latin natalis, which literally means 'birth', and the greetings in Italian are buon Natale and felice Natale.
