Colomba Pasqua
Posted: Mon Apr 01, 2013 10:07 pm
Mike has posted about a classic Italian savory Easter Pie- Pizza Pasqua. The Colomba Pasqua is a classic Italian Easter sweet bread made with eggs, butter, orange zest, candied orange peel formed in the shape of a dove [ colomba] and baked with a glaze of ground almonds, whole almonds, turbinado sugar and powdered sugar to form a crunchy crust. Carol Fields book The Italian Baker has an excellent recipe that gets you a truly outstanding Colomba.
Don't be daunted by the 3 stages of dough. This is necessary to allow for a light, airy crumb in a dough that has a lot of butter and sugar that inhibit gluten formation and weaken structure. Because I haven't found a commercial candied orange peel that does not taste chemical I make my own a day or two before mixing the dough. Any extra peel strips get their ends dipped in chocolate and served along side a slice of Colomba which is best accompanied by a terrific cup of coffee or cappucino.
Pizza Pasqua and Colomba Pasqua are Easter traditions in our family
Don't be daunted by the 3 stages of dough. This is necessary to allow for a light, airy crumb in a dough that has a lot of butter and sugar that inhibit gluten formation and weaken structure. Because I haven't found a commercial candied orange peel that does not taste chemical I make my own a day or two before mixing the dough. Any extra peel strips get their ends dipped in chocolate and served along side a slice of Colomba which is best accompanied by a terrific cup of coffee or cappucino.
Pizza Pasqua and Colomba Pasqua are Easter traditions in our family