Easy Italian Recipes

Like other Italian courses, the dolce, or dessert course, is enjoyed at a leisurely pace. The more elaborate the meal, the more this course becomes a series of individual moments — from fruit to coffee to after-dinner drinks — designed to prolong the pleasures of company around the table.

At the Italian home table, dessert is generally a simple affair: fruit, sometimes cheese, and good, strong coffee. A sweet dessert is not always on the menu, though on special occasions, a homemade pudding, custard, cake, or tart; a confection from a good pastry shop; or a purchased gelato or frozen dessert might also be enjoyed.

THE FRUIT COURSE

Italy's vegetables are rivaled only by its fresh fruits, many of which are grown locally, or brought from south to north in the colder months. To serve a fruit course in the Italian style, put together a platter, bowl, or basket of fresh fruits for passing at the table, and set out a bowlful of cold water for diners to dip their fruit to wash it. Outfit guests with a sharp knife, a dessert fork, and a small plate, so that they can enjoy fruit the Italian way, cutting segments and peeling them as they go.
Fresh fruit is also often enjoyed as macedonia, or fruit salad, a mixture of cut-up fruits sprinkled with a little lemon juice, lemon zest, sugar, and perhaps a fruit liqueur, like maraschino or kirsch. Another simple Italian way to serve summer fruits, such as peaches, nectarines, or strawberries, is to cut them into chunks, spoon them into wineglasses, and cover them with red or white wine. Chunks of fruit are also frequently served sprinkled with a little sugar and a drizzle of balsamic vinegar, which enhances their natural flavor. For a richer presentation, serve Summer Fruits with Cannoli Cream.

THE DESSERT COURSE

Frozen desserts are popular year-round in Italy and make a particularly fitting ending to meals in the warmer months. With excellent gelati and sorbetti available in the cafés and gelaterie of most Italian cities and towns, these frozen confections are seldom made at home. When served at home, gelato might take the form of Affogato, in which a scoop of gelato is doused with hot coffee.
If you own an ice-cream maker, whipping up authentic-tasting Lemon Sorbetto or Gelato alla Crema, which can also be used a base for making other flavors, is easy and rewarding. The refreshing Espresso Granita is even simpler to prepare, requiring no special equipment.
In Italy, custards and puddings are found on the dessert lists of most restaurants and are also enjoyed at home. The Italian favorites in this chapter include delicate yet decadent Panna Cotta with Berries; Marsala- scented Zabaglione served over fresh fruit; a Piedmontese Chocolate-Caramel Custard; Zuppa Inglese, Italy's version of the trifle; and Tiramisu, which, along with gelato, has become Italy's best-known dessert.
Cakes and fruit tarts, such as Peach Crostata, Olive Oil Cake with Cherry Compote, and Pistachio Cake, and Chocolate-Hazelnut Fritters are simple, traditional desserts, equally at home at the conclusion of a special meal or with afternoon coffee or tea.

THE CHEESE COURSE

A selection of cheeses makes an easy, savory dessert. The cheese course can accompany or follow the fruit course. Visit a good cheese shop and ask to sample a variety of Italian cheeses. Choose two to four types with contrasting and complementary qualities: fresh versus aged or an assortment of cow's, sheep's, or goat's milk cheeses. You may want to include a rich, soft cheese, such as crescenza, robiola, or Taleggio; an Italian blue, such as Gorgonzola; a medium-soft, semiaged cheese, like a Tuscan pecorino; and/or an aged cheese, such as Parmigiano-Reggiano or grana padano. Serve the cheese course with thin slices of bread, honey, toasted nuts, and dried fruit. An Italian sparkling or dessert wine makes a good accompaniment.

DESSERT WINES

Sweet Italian wines are often poured after the meal. These include sparkling wines, such as Asti Spumante, as well as still and fortified wines, like Moscato, Malvasia, Marsala, and yin santo. Cookies, such as Pine Nut—Orange Biscotti and Brutti ma Buoni Cookies, are often served with wine.

COFFEE AND CORDIALS

Coffee is generally offered after the dessert course and takes the form of a shot of intense espresso. To make Italian-style coffee, use an electric espresso machine or a stove-top espresso pot. If using the latter, heat the pot over medium-high heat until the coffee begins to emerge into the top chamber, then reduce the heat so the coffee seeps out slowly, ensuring a concentrated flavor. Serve in demitasse cups followed by a selection of after-dinner drinks, like grappa, Fernet Branca, Cynar, or limoncello served ice-cold.