Carnival, sweet Carnival: what do we eat in Ferrara?

Carnival, sweet Carnival: what do we eat in Ferrara?

Every city offers some typical delicacy, tending to be fried, to complete the crazy feast of ancient origins. Excess is part of the fun, both in terms of devising outlandish disguises and satisfying the gluttony with some extra sugar.

 Even in Ferrara, as you can imagine, the sweet proposal is particularly varied in the days leading up to Mardi Gras. Some people don't like dressing up, that's for sure, but sweets certainly bring almost everyone together.

So, passing through our city at this time of year, what might you find among the bakeries, stalls, pastry shops and bars? We thought we would provide you with a short guide to feed your sweet tooth.

In first place, mainly because of their fame, we definitely find crostoli. Never heard of them? How about chiacchiere, bugie, frappe, sfrappole, cenci or stracci? Or even croustoille, merveilles, orejas, chrusciki or chvorost? Well, yes, crostoli are just like Carnival masks: they have many different names and many different origins, from Italy to the whole world; yet - underneath - they are always the same delicacy with an elongated and draped shape, like starched fabric! Crunchy streamers that entwine like necklaces in the jewellery box, crostoli are definitely the stars of Ferrara Carnival. Flour, sugar, eggs, butter and lemon zest for the dough, and then a dip in boiling oil. The inevitable dusting of icing sugar that will soon settle silently on your scarves and coats when you taste them; all in perfect carnival style!

Should you like them so much that you want to take home quintals of them: our bakeries are well equipped, but we also recommend an excellent recipe to easily reproduce them once you are back home.

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A tie for second place, representing the best of Carnival tricks: tagliatelle and tortelli... but sweet! Tagliatelle cake is one of Ferrara's best-known specialities and can easily be tasted all year round. Legend has it that it was Lucrezia Borgia's blond curls that inspired the evocative Emilia-Romagna egg pasta, on the occasion of her marriage to the Duke of Ferrara, Annibale II Bentivoglio. In fact, it seems that tagliatelle, in contemporary style, were already in circulation during the Renaissance. Can we then say that the cake, adorned with the mouth-watering cascade of thin, blond fried tagliatelle, was the true unprecedented homage to the lady? Even this is not certain, but what we can certainly tell you is that the use of pasta in its sweet version will amaze you.

And so also the tortelli, somewhat less faithful to their savoury counterpart, will surprise you with their soft and filling heart. Cream - of course -, jam - of course -, chocolate - which cannot be missed -, but above all the traditional sweet mostarda to add the perfect note to the first bite. The dough is very similar to that of crostoli but the filling makes them softer. Strictly fried, they are closed in different ways depending on the craftsman's hand; they usually resemble ravioli with their jagged edge. Be very careful here: one pulls the other!

Last, only because of their dangerousness - we are joking, of course - the lupini! If tortelli can really get you into trouble, you will realise that you just can't resist lupini. A serving plate full of lupini, in front of 2 gluttons, has an average life time of maximum 2 minutes. Only a few grains of sugar will remain on the plate, but gluttons will try to pick them up by crushing their fingertips on them.