3161 Umbrian puds and cakes

Relaxed

I'm afraid I agree. I have been visiting the pastry shops in Perugia, including Sandri's, which is an institution, but find most dolce disappointing, as is the bread in Umbria. I rushed off before Christmas to buy a panettone at Sandri's, having read it was the best in Umbria & it was horrible. I prefer to make my own dolce.

I agree in part, about the Chocolate Festa. It takes place in the main streets, under plastic tents, which makes it look tacky, however, it has for sale a superb selection of European chocolate & for this reason alone, it's excellent. I found it useful for buying Christmas gifts.

Lavender Field

Still searching.......

True, I'm afraid. I've lost count of the number of times I've been offered disappointing Panna Cotta, Tiramisu and the odious Creme Caramel, even in the best restaurants. I usually opt for plain pineapple now or tozzetti biscuits with vin santo (or Sagrantino Passito, if you're lucky) to dunk 'em in. To be honest, I think the Umbrians regard the whole idea of desserts as a bit naff.

I've never sampled Sandri's cakes but they certainly [i]look[/i] wonderful. The place to go for bread and cakes in Perugia though is the bakary shop in the block behind Sandri's - walk down by the Post Office and its a couple of doors along from the Body Shop. They do a wonderful selection of breads, cakes, snacky things like cheesy breadsticks and delicious Torciglioni stuffed with real almond marzipan, all bathed in light by swanky Murano glass chandeliers.

I'm not a big fan of the over-hyped chocolate festival or of Perugina's products, but I can never resist a surreptitious giggle as I pass the risibly named 'Etruscan Chochotel' which is on the way to the station.

Oooh er, checking through all these threads for my Umbria info file and I find some of the foodie bits a bit negative... we can probably live without puds at a pinch, but what about cheese?? Seem to recall an amazing cheese platter at Dorando at San Gimignano, can Umbria compete ???:) :confused: :)

Once again, I think the Tuscans can probably show us a clean pair of heels. I do know some excellent artisan cheesemakers, but their products are only sold in a very local area. Salamis, wild boar and lamb seem to be Umbria's main culinary strengths. Bad news for vegetarians though!

I have to agree with you all although I don’t think its just Umbria. I have been to most regions of Italy and think that the puds (in general of course) are not up to much.

I think that this is also true of other nations e.g. Chinese and Indian cuisine - no one does puds like the Brits.

The best puddings I had in Italy were at a Hotel in Marche and they were all home made by the lady of the house. Jam tart and apple cake were some of the best. Maybe not quite as good as my mums though - and no custard!:(

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Pinocchiate

I mentioned this earlier, as an Perugian sweet delicacy, but since it is very seasonal I've only just been able to get hold of one.

"Ths ancient Perugian sweet, unique to our city, gets its name from the pinoli (or pinocchi) which are the main ingredient and give the spicy unusual taste of an old monastery.
The contrast between the two colours, black and white, which occurs in other antique sweets of Central Italy and elsewhere, arises from the old artistic tradition, originally from the Orient called "balzano" where strongly contrasting colours are used to startle. This decoration is found in architecture, with contrasting marble colours, in the decoration of flags and shields, and costumes, and in games such as chess.
Playing with the two colours, we have also two contrasting tastes - the subtle aromatic cool lemony white, and the stronger richer full bodied chocolate.The shape - two lozenges side by side, reflect one of the most important geometrical shaps in medieval decoration.
The presentation, wrapped in a twist of paper as if it was a large sweet, reveals the orgins as a "dolce di lancio", that is to say one of those sweets which was thrown in the spirit of friendly fights by the cavaliers and their dames at the fabulous parties held in those far off times."

That is an approximate translation of 80% of what is written on the wrapper!

[QUOTE=Marc;27270]To be honest, I think the Umbrians regard the whole idea of desserts as a bit naff.

[/QUOTE]

Hi everyone, as an Umbrian born and raised in Perugia but with a Sicilian mother, I would be tempted to agree If I only would eat in Umbrian restaurants. Rarely one finds a memorable dessert in a restaurant here even though this does happen. Ever had the melting chocolate tartlet at Hostaria Sparafucile in Foligno? with homemade vanilla ice cream? It is to die for, but you have to resist their interminably long service to get to this faboulus treat.

However Umbrians make pies at home all the time. Every respectable Umbrian woman bakes a crostata (short crust pastry with a jam or ricotta topping) for every occasion, sometimes once a week. Friends will compete on who makes the best crostata. I have several friends who make torrone for Christmas, lots of it and give it as gifts. Same for torciglione or serpente. Good strufoli are light and airy and just glazed in honey, not drowned in it. A good ciaramicola is also soft witha cruncy topping. An Italian family will traditionally have a dessert only on Sunday. If they did not bake anything, they'll go to the patisserie and buy "mignonettes" or "paste" (mini eclairs).

The problem is that it is hardly possible to find good quality Umbrian sweets in a shop. Forget about the centre of Perugia. Sandri gets a lot of press and it is a beautiful shop but it does not have a great reputation with the locals. Perugians go to Rossini or Pasticceria Etrusca close to the train station or to Gio...Vanni in Via Settevalli. As a tourist it is hardly possible to get there but if anyone is interested, I'll give you directions.
The only acceptable place in the centre of Perugia is Pasticceria dell'Accademia in Via dei Priori.

Of course, Sicily is heaven for any sugar addict, no other Italian region, in my opinion compares with the variety and finesse of Sicilian sweets. But then, they do not have truffles.

Hey there. I haven't posted for ages but my eye was caught by the discussion on Umbria and its disappointing puds. I completely agree but can't help thinking that it doesn't really matter. In the summer months the ice-cream is sensational and the fresh fruit and of course the beloved vinsanto. I find that after a normal Umbrian feast I can barely sit up by the time I've finished the secondo piatto never mind find room for a pudding. I leave comforting puds when I am back in the drizzle of an Edinburgh winter planning my next escape back to Italy.

Besides the traditional desserts already mentioned in this thread, there is a fabulous iced pudding from Umbria called "Zuccotto". This is my simplified version, but you can make with your own home-made ice cream.

To start with, you need to line a deep bowl (about 1.5 litre capacity) with a wet serviette or tea-towel.

INGREDIENTS:

1 sponge cake cut into 12 pieces approx.
1 small glass cherry liqueur
3 tablespoons Cointreau
1 small glass another liqueur or brandy
250 gr whipped cream
100 gr dark chocolate, melted and allowed to cool down
150 gr glazed fruits, finely chopped.
100 gr hazelnuts, chopped
250 gr top quality vanilla icecream, slightly softened
250 gr top quality chocolate chip icecream, slightly softened
cocoa and sugar to decorate

Mix the liqueurs and dip the cake pieces into the mixture. Line the bottom and sides of the bowl with the pieces. Put the bowl in the fridge.
Mix the softened vanilla icecream with the glazed fruits.
Mix the softened chocolate chip icecream with the hazelnuts.
Mix the dark chocolate melted with the whipped cream.
Get the bowl from the fridge and start filling it with layers of the three fillings already described.
Finish it with some of the whipped cream and chocolate mixture.
Keep it in the freezer overnight.
To serve, unmould and decorate the "zuccotto" with the sugar and cocoa mixture.
Enjoy!