When people mention Italian restaurants, the dishes that immediately come to mind would are the lasagnas, spaghettis, wines & breads. These dishes are trademarks of Italian cooking and are the most popular representations of Italian cuisine. These are all great Italian dishes and almost everyone agrees that a perfect dessert will be the perfect ending to any great meal.
Desserts from Italy, although not so known and popular, are slowly being recognized as great additions to anybody’s dessert table. Italian cuisines don’t just stop at those wonderfully made lasagnas and lovely spaghettis but also they venture into fish dishes and meats as well as desserts so there is actually a wide variety to choose from.
A very popular Italian dessert that’s quite widely known in the US is “Biscotti”. Biscotti’s a dry and hard cookie which is originally quite bitter in taste but Americans like a sweeter version of this cookie.
Normally, the biscotti cookie is eaten after a filling meal by dipping it into some red wine and this becomes their dessert. Wine is used to make your biscotti softer to eat. Americans on the other hand, just pair up biscotti with a good cup of coffee and eaten as snack and sometimes dessert.
Italians are actually quite popular for their much loved bread based desserts but aside from that, Italians also know how to make a good custard as well as custard based desserts too. An example of this would be the zabaglione.
A zabaglione is a very simple and easy-to–make custard that’s made out of egg yolks, dessert wine and sugar. Sometimes this custard gets a few additional ingredients like fruits and etc but most of the time it’s enjoyed and eaten as is.
Almost all articles about Italian sweet treats mentions Cannoli. Cannoli is probably Italy’s most famous and most loved dessert. This is actually made using a pastry that has a hollow shell and then filled together with some Ricotta (either sweetened or fresh will do).
The Ricotta filling could be used plain or the Ricotta could be enhanced with other stuff like fruits, chocolates and other wonderful and yummy ingredients. The cannoli’s ends are then dipped into chopped up pistachios after it’s whole shell has been filled for that crunchy texture and great flavor too.
On your next Italian dining binge with family or friends, don’t just stop your food experience with the usual pasta or bread fare but instead take the experience a step further by ordering Italian delicious desserts as that great finish to the Italian meal.
Don’t be restricted and intimidated by things and food which you aren’t so familiar with. Experiment and get out of your comfort zone by indulging in these creamy Italian treats.