History of desserts
Tiramisu: The Dessert War
Did you know that two Italian regions are locked in a legal battle over tiramisu? Veneto claims it was invented in 1969 at Le Beccherie restaurant in Treviso, but Friuli has a receipt from 1959 to prove otherwise. In 2017, the Italian government recognized Friuli as the official place of origin, and the governor of Veneto nearly exploded. The best part: there is a third version where tiramisu was born in a brothel to “revive” customers. Italy's most famous dessert is only 50-70 years old, did not appear in dictionaries until 1980, and is now the fifth most recognized Italian word in Europe. All for coffee, mascarpone, and regional pride!
Sources: AIFB, Italy Magazine, Britannica, La Voce di New York
Cannoli: From harem to Convent
Cannoli are over a thousand years old and have a spicy history. They began in the 9th century in Arab harems in Sicily, a “tribute to the Sultan.” After the Christian conquest, nuns adopted the recipe and sold them for 700 years from convents. Originally, they were only eaten during Carnival as a symbol of fertility, with men singing “the cannolo is the scepter of every king.” The movie “The Godfather” immortalized them with “Leave the gun, take the cannoli.” From Muslim harem to Christian convent to mafia movie. Only in Italy.
Sources: La Cucina Italiana, National Geographic, Wikipedia
Madeleines: The Mystery
No one knows who invented madeleines.
There are three versions: was it Madeleine Paulmier, servant to the Polish king in exile in 1755? Or were they invented by medieval nuns on the pilgrimage route to Santiago? Or was it chef Jean Avice in the 19th century? The only certainty is that they come from the Lorraine region and were first mentioned in 1755. The nuns at the Sainte Madeleine convent in Commercy sold them to support themselves until the French Revolution. Marcel Proust immortalized them in 1913 when his narrator dips one in tea and is flooded with childhood memories. Today, they represent France at European events.
Sources: Culture Trip, Britannica, napoleon.org, Wikipedia
Éclairs: The Abandoned Chef Who Conquered Europé
The éclair was created by Marie-Antoine Carême (1784-1833), the first celebrity chef. His story is dramatic: born into a family with 15-25 children, he was abandoned at age 8 on the streets of Paris during the Revolution, and ended up cooking for Napoleon, the Tsar of Russia, and the British King. He invented the éclair (originally “pain à la duchesse”), the profiterole, and the croquembouche. The name “éclair” (lightning bolt) came about in 1850, twenty years after his death—because it is eaten “in a flash” or because it shines like lightning. Every June 22 is Chocolate Éclair Day.
Sources: Britannica, Le Foodist, Arta Albă, Wikipedia
Croissants: The Austrian Impostor
Surprise! The croissant is NOT French. Its ancestor is the 13th-century Austrian kipferl. The romantic (and probably false) legend: Viennese bakers heard the Ottomans digging tunnels in 1683, saved the city, and celebrated with pastries shaped like Ottoman crescent moons. The reality: In 1838, Austrian officer August Zang opened a Viennese bakery in Paris selling kipferl. Parisians went wild. The French invention came in 1915 when Sylvain Claudius Goy used laminated dough (a French technique) instead of brioche, creating the flaky layers. France took something Austrian and perfected it.
Sources: Smithsonian Magazine, Institute of Culinary Education, The Local, Wikipedia
Although bomboloni does not have as long a documented history as some other Italian desserts, it does appear in gastronomic sources and historical records related to Italian pastry traditions from the 19th and 20th centuries. Its name derives from the Italian “bomba” or “bombolone,” which refers both to its round shape and the explosion of flavor when you bite into the filling. The dessert was developed from Central European recipes such as the Austrian krapfen and the German berlina, following the spread of Viennese pastries in Italy in the 19th century.
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Baklava: The Sweet War
Baklava is 2,700 years old, and at least six countries claim to have invented it. Was it the Assyrians in 800 BC? The Greeks with their “placenta cake”? The nomadic Turks of the 11th century? The Persians with recipes from the 9th century? They all claim paternity. The oldest written reference is from a 15th-century Turkish poem. The Ottoman Empire perfected it, from 1520, the Sultan gave trays of baklava to his soldiers every Ramadan in an official ceremony. In 2006, Greece and Turkey almost fought when Cyprus chose baklava to represent them in the EU. Until in 2013, the European Commission ruled: Gaziantep baklava is officially Turkish.
Sources: Smithsonian Magazine, National Geographic, Greek Reporter, Wikipedia
Kunefe: The Palestinian Dessert That Turkey Adopted
Kunefe was invented in Palestine (probably in the 10th century), specifically in Nablus, famous for its Nabulsi cheese made from goat's milk. It is kadayif dough (phyllo strands) with melted cheese, soaked in syrup, served flaming. In 2009, 170 bakers from Nablus made the world's largest kunefe: 75 meters wide, weighing 1,550 kilos, an orange carpet covering the city. But Turkey adopted it so completely that most people believe it is Turkish. In 2012, the EU gave geographical protection to Hatay künefe (the Turkish version). The difference: Palestine uses salty cheese and semolina. Turkey uses ultra-stretchy unsalted cheese and crispy kadayif. It's a Palestinian national symbol... adopted by Turkey.
Debbie Green
Tulumba: The Dessert Named After a Bomb
Tulumba means “bomb” in Turkish, from the Italian tromba. Why is a fried dessert called a bomb? No one knows. It originated in the Ottoman imperial kitchens (15th-16th centuries), but probably came from Spain. Sephardic Jews fleeing the Inquisition in 1492 brought churros, which Ottoman chefs adapted. It is choux pastry (like éclairs) molded with a star nozzle, fried until golden brown, and dipped in cold syrup. It is served cold (unusual for Turkish desserts). It is called bamiyeh in Iran (after okra), balah ash-Sham in Egypt, datli in Iraq, and pomba in Cyprus. It exists in 15+ countries with different names: a legacy of the Ottoman Empire.
Sources: Eats History, Feast in the Middle East, Cadbury Dessert Corner