Chocolate and gianduja cream, panettone, nougat, and fragrant, aromatic cookies…
Even during the Christmas holidays, master chocolatiers and pastry chefs bring ancient tradition, imagination, and creativity to serve Christmas and festivities, creating a sweet journey into taste.
This journey starts in Turin, the European capital of chocolate processing since the second half of the 16th century, passes through Cherasco, the city of dark chocolate kisses and hazelnuts (IGP from the Langhe), and then to Cuneo with "Cuneesi," filled with rum (made with two meringue wafers enclosing a soft filling of dark chocolate and rum-flavored pastry cream, in a crunchy dark chocolate shell), bonet, the soft spoonable pudding made with cocoa, amaretti cookies, and rum. Then there are the "Alfierini," pralines with the effigy of Vittorio Alfieri exclusive to Asti, while in Castellazzo Bormida, in the province of Alessandria, you can find tantalizing candied pears, roses, and grapefruit covered in chocolate, a tempting challenge even for those who lean towards the "salty" side!
And the filled chocolate version of a pride of Piedmontese pastry tradition couldn't be missing: the panettone. With its low shape, rich in butter, egg yolk, soft raisins, delicate orange peels, and candied citron, covered with a delicious crunchy glaze of hazelnuts and almonds. These characteristics make it unique and distinguish it from its Milanese namesake. The birthplace of the Piedmontese Glazed Panettone (regional PAT) is Pinerolo. With its typical low shape, rich in raisins, orange peels, and candied citron, covered with a hazelnut and almond glaze, it pairs well with a glass of Asti Spumante or Moscato DOCG, Brachetto d’Acqui or Alta Langa, Erbaluce DOGC and Caluso Passito or Caluso Riserva DOCG, but also with vermouth, a homage to the famous aromatic liquor and royal beverage born in Turin in 1786 from the ingenuity of Benedetto Carpano.
A slice of panettone should be accompanied by a glass of good sparkling or brut wine. And in Piedmont, a fertile land boasting 17 DOCG and 42 DOC, the choice is vast. For the occasion, you can't go wrong with uncorking a bottle of Asti Spumante DOCG or Moscato. Both are made from the white muscat grape, named after the Latin "muscum" (musk) for its typical and pleasant aromaticity and are obtained from vineyards cultivated in the Lower Piedmont area, including Asti, Cuneo, and Alessandria. A pride of Italian oenology, they have become a heritage for enthusiasts worldwide. They satisfy the palates of those who love "bubbles" (Asti Spumante) or prefer a pleasant non-sparkling white wine (Moscato). From the same area, Alta Langa DOCG adds a touch of elegance to the celebration.
And at this point, to the basket of sweet specialties, you can also add a good bar of "toron 'd ninsòle," the typical hazelnut nougat of Piedmont. Certainly, the almond and honey mixture has been known since ancient times in various bar and bar variations. But in Piedmont, did you know that hazelnut nougat was born from an experiment by Giuseppe Sebaste? The young pastry chef from Gallo d'Alba, who in 1885 replaced Langhe hazelnuts (now an IGP product), abundantly available, with almonds, which were more expensive.
Torrone production is also typical of the Asti area, where tradition has it that it was brought by the cooks of the Visconti, lords of Milan, who had close relations with the Asti bankers. The traditional recipe of Asti nougat, as we know it today, is thanks to an artisan pastry chef from the area, who conceived it towards the end of the 18th century. The success of production began in 1883 when one of his descendants opened a laboratory in Mombercelli for the manufacture of nougat using his predecessor's recipe. Today, laboratories and pastry shops in the Asti area offer the ancient version of the typical crispy nougat, the result of a long preparation that begins in summer with hazelnut toasting, continues with cooking (an average of 7 and a half hours), and ends with the cutting of the bars (originally in beechwood drawers). Indulging in one delicacy after another, we recommend tempting yourself at least once with the soft nougat cake covered in chocolate: a divine experience, also entirely Piedmontese! Let's not forget the Christmas log, a triumph of chocolate, cream, and chestnut cream, a sweet interpretation of the log that peasant families used to set aside for Christmas Eve, waiting for Midnight Mass.
To sweeten the winter days there is also the Pane di San Gaudenzio, dedicated to the patron saint of the city of Novara, celebrated on January 22nd. Rectangular or round shortcrust pastry, sprinkled on the surface with chopped pine nuts or hazelnuts and icing sugar, it has a soft filling made from sugar, sultanas, melted butter, eggs, vanilla and lemon flavourings. Wonderful! And what about biscuits? Fragrant like the Bicciolani from Vercelli (flavoured with cinnamon, cocoa and cloves), the Brutti e Buoni from Borgomanero, the Krumiri from Casale Monferrato, the Canestrelli from Biella or the Margheritine from Stresa, to savor the sweet side all year round of life in Piedmont.