|
|
|
|
| Panforte Margherita. Do not be misted by the name of this historical speciality since its literal meaning is not derived from the hardness and compactness of the dough but rather from the term fortis, meaning sour. The explanation of this adjective comes from the early Middle Ages when it was a popular custom to prepare a special focaccia (flat bread) from a simple mixture of wheat flour and water-common bread dough-sweetened with honey, and called melatello. Often, available fruits in season such as figs, grapes, plums and apples etc. were added to complete the bread. The fruit was simply halved or sometimes minced, and put into the bread which was then baked in a moderate oven so that the dough was cooked without becoming too dry; in this way the fruit was not completely dehydrate.
The result was that, especially in a warm and humid season, the bread took on a somewhat acid flavour and so was called pane forte (‘strong’ bread) meaning pane acido (sour bread). In Tuscany, the first accounts that begin to mention panes melato or melatelli date from the early 13th century. Also mentioned is panespepatos, so we can assume that in this recipe, besides fruit and honey, there were a few walnuts, some almonds and ginger. This last ingredient was, like saffron, also cultivated in Tuscany in those times (11th century onwards). Later still a certain amount of black pepper was certainly included and then came the addition of cloves and cinnamon. There are also a few references to the Panforte di Siena around 1280 in the ‘Statute of the Corporation of Bakers and Confectioners’ but then we must jump to the 16th century when the cake was more widespread and thus made in greater quantities by both the Convents and the spice-sellers. In fact, the raw ingredients (the spices) were to be found in the convents, donated by pilgrims returning from the Orient, and also at the ‘spice-sellers’ who had discovered in spices a new source for preparing new medicines much favoured by the doctors of the time.
A new and very successful variety of Panforte was created in 1879 when Margherita of Savoy and her husband Umberto, then sovereigns of Italy, came to Siena for the Palio. To mark this occasion the queen was offerd a delicate ‘Panforte bianco’ which was christened Panforte Margherita in her honour. Panforte bianco differs from classic dark kind due to a new method of preparing the candied fruit. The traditional system of fermentation was replaced by a very modern technique of osmosis which allowed the fruit to be transformed into an extremely sweet, glassy mass. White sugar was used together with a little honey and ‘Avola’ almonds, which are larger and have a stronger flavour, and the predominant spices were nutmeg, vanilla and Ceylon cinnamon. To create a softer dough and to render it less tough even after being cookedin the oven, a certain amount of marzipan was added. Finally, the surface was covered in an abundant dusting of icing sugar. |
|
|
|
|
|
