Fly, white dove, fly. Nilla Pizzi sang in Sanremo in 1952. But today the white Easter doves have almost nothing left. The traditional recipe calls for flour, butter, eggs, sugar, a candied orange peel filling and a sugar and almond icing topping. Over the years, however, chefs and pastry chefs have tried their hand at new mouth-watering recipes, enriching their leavened desserts with ever more original ingredients, icings and garnishes.
A typical Easter dessert, rich in history, with many legends about its origins and symbolic meanings. born in Milan in the 30s from an idea of the advertiser Dino Villani dalla Motta to continue using the machinery to knead panettone even outside the Christmas holidays. The production of the dove, like that of the panettone, requires more than three days of work between cold leavening and slow fermentation. Below is a review of some of the best Colombe 2021. Foodfirstonline offers a choice among the best pastry or oven doves leaving out those signed by the great chefs, precisely to favor the artisan aspect of the Easter dessert par excellence. Although in this field there is no shortage of news
Granny Ball
Renato and Talotti and Tiziana Merlini, owners of the ice cream parlor and pastry shop in Palmanova (UD), received the gold medal for their Classic Dove in the category of the same name in the competition organized by the International Federation of Pastry, Ice Cream and Chocolate (Fipgc). Talotti had already won gold for panettone at the world championships, again in the classic category. But also two other proposals from the Nonna Pallina pastry shop are a must try, the Colomba Chocolate and Pear and that at Pistachio and Almonds.
Oliveri 1882
The company from Arzignano, in the province of Vicenza, is a staple of Italian pastry. The Olivieri 1882 doves are the real pride of the company, they are distinguished by a greater quantity of eggs, almonds, hazelnuts and pine nuts. Very soft and smooth with a clean taste, the Colomba is obtained by processing for over 48 hours, prepared with traditional ingredients: butter, flour, chopped candied fruit and eggs. In addition to the traditional version there are five variants: Apple, raisins and cinnamon; Apricot and Caramel; black cherry; Fishing; White chocolate and wild berries handcrafted semi-candied fruit that blend with the sweetness of Ivoire 35% chocolate.
The focaccia from the Tabiano pastry shop
Pasticceria Tabiano in Parma is famous for its Focaccia bread: a dessert very similar to panettone and colomba in shape, leavening and ingredients, but with a lower percentage of fat. The dough is enriched with pieces of fruit and a splash of syrup based on the variety and there are all tastes: Focaccia 10 natural and organic wholemeal sugars with chocolate; Peach, Apricot and Pineapple Focaccia; Focaccia with Chocolate and Pears; Citrus fruit focaccia from Sicily; Pandolce with extra virgin olive oil; Focaccia with Ancient Grains from the Food Valley; Traditional dove of Parma; Focaccia of the Duchess; Focaccia with Limoncello Cream; Focaccia alla Zuppa Inglese and the Evolution one.
For Easter 2021, the master Claudio Gatti presents a limited-edition dove: Innovation, the encounter between the one with ancient grains and the one with ten natural sugars and organic cereals. With a heart of organic white chocolate flavored with vanilla and a covering of hulled seeds that can also be found inside. A completely (or almost) organic product.
Martesana pastry shop
A soft dove, with 48 hours of work and a mother yeast worked since the master pastry chef Vincenzo Santoro was 11 years old. His leavened products stand out for their attention to detail, so much so that they were awarded the title of Best Panettone at the Panettone Artists 2020. Even the dove cakes are noteworthy, able to keep all the flavors of the carefully selected raw materials intact. In addition to Traditional Colomba covered with granulated sugar and selected almonds, there is the Dove of Enzo with apricots and chocolate covered with white chocolate. There Colomba Pistachio and Chocolate, limited edition, is instead created together with the digital school dedicated to the gastronomic world, Acadèmia. Produced in only 500 pieces, it is characterized by the pistachio and chocolate cream granache, a coating of dark chocolate and a crunchy grain of pistachios.
Hiromi Cake Japanese pastry dove with Matcha tea
Born from the encounter between Italian pastry art and Japanese gastronomic tradition, the Colomba al Tè Matcha soft matcha dough, enriched with yuzu valhrona chocolate and yuzu paste and candied apricots. Traditional icing with the addition of matcha and almonds. And another proposal to keep him company is the Colomba Shizuku: cocoa dough and hazelnut paste, enriched with hazelnut cremino and candied ginger. All completed by cocoa and hazelnut ice. Colombe are available both take away and delivered in all areas of Rome within the GRA or can be ordered from the website.
Bread crumbs 2
Four days of work, raw materials of excellence such as organic acacia honey, vanilla bean and fresh coconut from Santo Domingo, anhydrous butter and egg yolks. They awarded the first prize for the “Best Innovative Italian Dove 2021” to the Roman brothers Salvatore and Fabio Albanesi in the competition organized by the International Federation of pastry, ice cream and chocolate. Miss Bayahibe is inspired by Caribbean flavours.
Gran Pasticceria La Torre
A great passion for an art cultivated since childhood prompted Alberto Sorrentino forty years ago to open a laboratory on Via Nazionale in Torre del Greco destined to become an indispensable point of reference for lovers of quality pastry. Here the word "Laboratory" is not just a sign but the imperative of a philosophy affirmed by Alberto and now carried forward by his son Francesco who re-proposes the flavors of the great Bourbon pastry-making past. Research that combines with innovation and constant research to bring out the soul of the raw materials, all obviously of the highest quality. For Easter, the Gran Pasticceria La Torre, which has opened a second location in the center in 2019, in Corso Vittorio Emanuele 131, offers a series of doves next to the ritual Pastiera, and Casatiello, which represent a tribute to the territory and the perfumes of Campania. The Artisan stuffed Colomba, goes well with the Colomba with Vesuvius apricots and white chocolate drops, with the Colomba with black cherry and dark chocolate drops, with Lemon with white chocolate drops, candied lemon cubes (jar of limoncello spreadable cream, alla Colomba Chocolate with white, milk and dark chocolate drops (with a jar of gianduja spreadable cream. Not even to say that the 36-hour double-dough leavening is natural, the dough soft and the fragrance guaranteed.
Sweetboy
It's time for doves for the Dolcemascolo pastry shop. At the helm of the Frosinone company is Matteo Dolcemascolo, third generation pastry chef and young winner of the "Best Emerging Pastry Chef 2021" award for Gambero Rosso. His colomba is distinguished by the icing made with Noto almonds, refined and transformed into flour and then combined with white cane sugar and whipped alnum. There Classic Dove it is soft with citrus hints. Then there's the Dove with Berries made with the fruit of the Arpinati woods, the dove al Chocolate embellished with 60% pure dark chocolate drops and that Chocolate and pears.
Sal De Riso
For a journey through the flavors and aromas of the Amalfi Coast, there are the leavened products of the Sal De Riso pastry shop with all the sweetness and genuineness of the creations of master pastry chef Salvatore De Riso. On the occasion of Easter, many novelties together with the classics.
The new dove Rising Sun. is a leavened product that combines West and East, Japan and Italy, with mandarin, pink grapefruit, lemon and Japanese yuzu, filled with semi-candied pineapple, Candonga strawberries and Inspiration Yuzu Valrhona. The result is an extremely soft and well-leavened dessert. Another novelty are the Three Gianduia Chocolates, with white, dark and milk chocolate. Then there is the Colomba all'Amarena, the Cremderì stuffed with milk chocolate chips and cremderì; the Mandorlata, filled with candied orange peels and covered with the classic almond glaze. The Colomba Exotic stuffed with pineapple, mango and vanilla and coconut cream. La Nuvola, filled with white chocolate chips and vanilla from the Bourbon Islands; Stregata with Alberti Strega cream and drops of candied strawberries. The Fiordaliso, with lemon and mandarin from the Amalfi Coast and with an almond and hazelnut glaze.
Ancient pastry shop Giovanni Scaturchio
In Naples, one cannot fail to know the Antica Pasticceria Giovanni Scaturchio. With over a century of history, the company carries on the ancient Neapolitan confectionery tradition. Famous for the chocolate that allowed it to become the official supplier of the Royal house: the Ministeriale, a chocolate medallion filled with liqueur cream (rum) created in the 20s by Francesco Scaturchio for his beloved Anna Foguez, a diva of the time. In addition to the exclusive Ministerial Colomba, the Antica Pasticceria offers: the Colomba Classic, Chocolate, Lemon and Pistachio.
De Vivo pastry shop
Two generations later, the historic Neapolitan pastry shop De Vivo continues to offer leavened cakes of the highest quality and creativity. As the Colomba Artichoke, for salty lovers, made with pieces of Campania artichoke, parsley, salt, pepper, garlic and chilli pepper. There Colomba 'Nzogna and Pepe enriched with suet, pepper, bacon, pecorino, capocollo, salami, garlic and chilli and which is inspired by the casiatello which cannot be missing on Neapolitan tables. There Colomba Pesto and Tomato with the addition of dried Campania tomatoes, garlic and chilli pepper to the dough, a real hymn to our country. And sweet in the end the Hazelnut Colomba, a tribute to the Giffoni hazelnut for its aromatic flavor and firm pulp. The dough is enriched with pieces of chocolate (milk and dark), filled with hazelnut ganache and citrus infusion and covered with white chocolate and chopped hazelnuts.
Fiasconaro
A story that began over 60 years ago in Castelbuono, a small town in the Madonie Park in Sicily. An inheritance left by Mario Fiasconaro to the three brothers Fausto, Martino and Nicola. The turning point came in the 90s when they decided to reinterpret the traditional Northern Christmas cake in a Mediterranean key: panettone. A leap in quality that has made the Fiasconaro brand famous beyond the Sicilian borders. In addition to the Classic Colomba, the Sicilian company also produces other tasty variations, such as the Pink Colomba and Prickly Pear, Marron Noir, Oro di Manna, Nero Sublime, Oro Verde, Oro Nero, Oro Bianco, Cioccolato, Pandorata, Hazelnuts, Berries, Apricot and Chocolate from Modica PGI, Pear and Chocolate, Pineapple and Apricot and the Colomba special format of 2kg.
In addition, the historic Sicilian pastry shop collaborates with Dolce&Gabbana, preparing a special collection of products that combine the elegance of the Italian high fashion house and the pastry art of Fiasconaro. There Colomba with Sicilian Almonds, the Colomba with Chocolate and Strawberry Jam from the Sicilian Forest and the one with Sicilian Chocolate. Two different realities but united by knowledge and passion for good food. The natural leavening guarantees a soft consistency that enhances the freshness and genuineness of the local ingredients. A completely artisanal preparation: from the dough to the packaging.
Bonfissuto pastry shop in Canicattì
Pasticceria Bonfissuto of Canicattì, in the province of Agrigento, this year presents the Colomba with Pistachio at km 0, the result of the crowdfunding campaign "Adopt a pistachio" to save a native cultivation of pistachio plants. Its line also includes Colomba with 18 Carat Modica Chocolate, Traditional Colomba with Raisins and Candied Orange, Colomba with Dark Chocolate, Colomba with Pineapple and Apricots, Colomba with Black Cherries and Lemon, Colomba with Berries and White Chocolate, Strawberries and the truffle one. All combined with cream in a jar based on the variety of the dove.
Vincent Delicacies
The Vincente Delicacies pastry shop, on the slopes of Etna, cultivates and produces the very famous Bronte PDO pistachio from which the "Fastuca" line derives: the best pistachio in the world that is harvested once every two years. The pastry shop focuses on producing desserts that enhance the flavor of green gold, using only seasonal fruit and 0 km ingredients, in collaboration with local companies selected for their quality.
The Delicacies Easter line features: Mongibello, the dove panorama with white chocolate and Sicilian pistachio; Jardina the leavened dessert with pineapple, apricot and pistachio; there Moorish covered in 70% extra dark chocolate with chopped green pistachios from Bronte Dop, filled with pistachio cream. There Norman covered with very fine white chocolate and pistachio grain and filled with Bronte green pistachio cream. Finally, the novelty of 2021: the Persian dove with candied peach and 70% extra dark chocolate drops with a glaze of sprinkles and pistachios.
Paideia Foundation
Also this year Easter has the flavor of solidarity: the dove is born Galup for Paideia Foundation, to support children with disabilities and families followed by the Foundation. Part of the proceeds from the sale will be donated to support the children and families that Paideia supports through therapy, psychological support, extraordinary economic interventions and socialization activities
