Traditional venetian recipes: the PINZA veneziana
Among the traditional venetian recipes for Christmas, the Venetian PINZA is one of the oldest and best known. The PINZA is a rustic dessert that was prepared in the houses of fishermen or ordinary people: since it was made to celebrate the holidays, this was, however, richer than the usual desserts and was often made special by the fantasy of the hostess ...
The PINZA is a sweet typical of Veneto and it is a kind of flake made with very simple ingredients such as stale bread, sugar, milk and eggs. However, since this cake was made to celebrate Christmas or Epiphany (the Venetian PINZA is also called the "Torta dea marantega" or "Cake of the witch", called marantega in venetian), has always been enriched with dried fruits and raisins, which were once rare and expensive and therefore not used daily (if you like sweets, get your apartment in the Dorsoduro district… SEE OUR PROPOSAL).
The recipe, which main ingredients are always basically the same, changes from family to family so that it becomes a feature of all parties. There are families who have been making the "grandmother's recipe" for centuries and keep certain ingredients or workings secret so that they can not be 'copied' by anyone: in doing so, they maintain their own family identity even in the kitchen.
The ingredients for this unicum in traditional venetian recepes are: 300 gr of old bread, 90 ml of milk, 150 g of flour, 30 g of butter, 100 g of sugar, 80 g of sultanas, two eggs, a handful of fennel seeds and a pinch of salt (to enjoy the PINZA, the best area is also Castello: SEE OUR PROPOSAL for your holiday!)
Recipe: As a first step, soften the raisins in lukewarm water and bite the eggs (egg yolks and egg whites) until you get a spumed mixture. Then take the bread, cut it into pieces, and let it soften in milk for an hour. Then you must add, very slowly, the flour, the sugar, the butter at room temperature and than the raisins, the whipped eggs and the salt. Blend it all slowly, so as to get a homogeneous set. Pick up a baking tin with high edges and tensely square or rectangular (not round), spread it with some butter and sprinkle over some grated pan. Than add the pastry and add over fennel seeds. Place the PINZA in the oven already hot at 180 ° C and cook it for about one hour. Before removing the PINZA from the mold, it must be cooled down in order to avoid splitting or remaining clamps. To accompany this jewel among traditional venetian recipes, more than a Prosecco or a sweet wine, the ideal is a good red wine or a yellow Ribolla ...
