Panforte di Siena recipe - Italian Notes (2024)

FAQs

What is a panforte di Siena? ›

Dating back to the Middle Ages, Panforte di Siena is a flat cake containing spices and candied fruit, which is usually enjoyed during the Christmas festivities in Italy. The moment you sink your teeth into the first slice, you realize that this is a very ancient recipe.

Literally, panforte means 'strong bread', derived from the Latin fortis, which refers to the spicy flavour.

Due to the high price of its ingredients, especially pepper, it was certainly destined for the more affluent noble class. The Panforte recipe was guarded by Arte dei Medici e Spezial of Siena who also used it as an aphrodisiac, curative or even a bargaining chip.

Both are fruit cakes, pan pepato (or panpepato) is flavored with black pepper and chocolate, while pan forte (or panforte) is milder, with the chocolate and pepper omitted. Documentation of these fruitcakes dates back to the 1200s, and shows that this type of bread was paid to Siena monasteries as a tithe.

If using baking parchment, peel it off and discard it; the edible rice paper can be left on.

Traditionally panforte was known as a delicacy for nobles and the upper class. In the early 1200's servants and settlers would present panforte to the nuns and monks of the monastery of Montecelso near Siena, Italy. Today panforte is traditionally served around Christmas time, but can be enjoyed year round.

When you bite into a piece of Panforte, you will be surprised at how chewy it is. This chewy texture comes from mixing fruits, nuts, spices and flour (just enough to bind the ingredients) with a cooked syrup of sugar and honey.

en. big girl = ragazzona.

So, here are the sweet gems that Siena is known for all over the world, especially during the Christmas season: cavallucci, ricciarelli, panforte, cantuccini and pan co' Santi! Let's do a little round-up of these sweet treats by exploring their history one by one. Cavallucci are biscuits made of flour, honey and sugar.

The two main types of panforte are panforte Margherita, which is lighter and usually contains candied citrus, and panforte nero, which has added cocoa and spices, and which usually incorporates more dried fruits like figs and raisins.

What is panforte margherita? ›

Description. A typical dessert of the town of Siena and Christmas holidays staple, it is soft and very sweet: packed with honey, mixed candied fruit and whole toasted almonds and baked on a host.

EN – Panforte is a traditional Tuscan cake known since the Middle Age (1000 a.C). In the past it was called Pane Natalizio (Christmas bread) or Pane Aromatico or Panpepato (Spicy bread) and baked only by skilled druggists (or apothecary), called Speziali.

Panpepato dates back to the Medieval period and it is inspired by the Tuscan panforte, from the area of Siena. Originally, it was made of bread with dried fruit added and honey and was used to celebrate during the Christmas period.

Lardy cake dates back to the mid-19th century, and almost certainly comes from the West Country, although it's probably best not to attempt to pin down exactly where there unless you're feeling particularly brave. The idea is simple: you use lard in place of butter to enrich a white dough.