My Favorite Italian Desserts

Italian food is great. I've had more good food on my trip to Italy than on my trips to France! In addition to the starters and main dishes (primi and segundi) that many of us already know, Italian desserts are a deliciously tempting selection of sweets and treats to which you can become dangerously addicted.

Italy and their varied food drive me crazy. And I’m sure I’m not the only one. But It doesn’t matter how many days you spend in the country, you will not have enough time to try everything. Italian food is not limited to pizza and pasta and is very different depending on what region of Italy in which you are staying. This huge variety also extends to their desserts which go far beyond their famous gelato.

Here are some Italian desserts, do not read this post hungry!

Amaretti

The amaretti, eaten in all regions of Italy, are biscuits made from almond paste, which contains sugar, egg white, sweet and bitter almonds, and apricot kernels. They can also have spices, honey, milk, yeast, and especially in the industrial varieties. It's often served with coffee.

Recipes for Amaretti

I love these recipes:

• Soft amaretti cookies from Love & Olive Oil
• Amaretti Cookies from Simply Home Cooked
• Low Carb Amaretti Cookies from Step Away from the Carbs

Places to buy Amaretti

• There are a variety of options on Amazon!
• I have bought them in-stores and online at World Market as well.

Italian Cookie Cookbooks

• Sweet Maria's Italian Cookie Tray from Maria Bruscino Sanchez
• Oh! Top 50 Italian Cookie Recipes Volume 1 and Volume 2 from Caroline D. Wirth.

Cannoli

The cannoli is a typical dessert from Sicily, consisting of a mass rolled into a tube, which has the ingredients mixed with ricotta inside. The cannoli are very popular all over Sicily and can be found in all bakeries. They are considered to be a carnival dessert, but now they are eaten all year round.

Perhaps you remember the cannoli from The Godfather when Clemenza's wife asks him to bring a plate of cannolis when he comes back home. During the trip, there’s a murder and after this and before returning with his wife, Clemenza tells the murderer and companion: “Leave the gun. Take the cannoli. “

Recipes for Cannoli

I love these recipes:

• Cannoli from Cooking Classy
• Cannoli from Preppy Kitchen
• Easy Keto Cannoli from Low Carb Inspirations

Places to buy Cannoli

• Marketside Traditional Cannoli available at Walmart.
• Rito's online.
• Circo's Pastry Shop.

Itlian Dessert Cookbook featuring Cannoli

• Grace's Sweet Life: Homemade Italian Desserts from Grace Massa-Langlois.
• Delicious Cannoli Cookbook from Valerie Ray.
• Complete Cannoli Cookbook from Thomas Kelley

Gelato

Hard to say if gelato is the most famous Italian dessert, but I bet if it's not, I'm sure it is a close second. There are whole gelato-eating tours in many cities and I can think of nothing better to eat on a hot summer day in Rome when it can feel a bit stifling.

Gelato is an Italian-style ice cream made with a base of milk, cream, and sugar at its base. Then it's flavored with fruits, nuts, and other flavorings like spices. The flavors can get quite fancy, but my favorites are plain natural (think like a slightly sweetened Greek yogurt) and dark chocolate.

Recipes for Gelato

I love these recipes:

• How to Make Authentic Italian Gelato at Home from Recipes from Italy
• Low carb gelato from Better Than Bread Keto

Places to buy Gelato

• Order Gelato Fiasco online.
• Order online or buy Talenti gelato in stores near you.

Great Gelato Cookbooks

• The Ciao Bella Book of Gelato and Sorbetto from F.W. Pearce.
• The Perfect Scoop from David Lebovitz

Panna Cotta

The panna cotta (in Italian “cooked cream”) is a typical dessert from the Piedmont region of Italy, made of cream, sugar, and gelatine, often decorated with red fruit jams (or any fresh fruit). It’s quite milky and has a texture similar to jelly. It’s absolutely delicious!

Recipes for Panna Cotta

I love these recipes:

• Panna Cotta from Pretty Simple Sweet.
• Panna Cotta from Preppy Kitchen.
• Low carb panna cotta from The Big Man’s World.

Great Panna Cotta Cookbooks

• Panna Cotta: Italy's Elegant Custard Made Easy from Camilla V. Saulsbury.
• 75 Panna Cotta Recipe from Elisa Martin

Panettone

The panettone is a bread made with a brioche-type dough, raisins, and candied or crystallized fruit. It has a dome-shaped mass and is made from flour, yeast, eggs, butter, and sugar. It’s served in vertical slices, accompanied by hot chocolate or sweet wines such as Asti Spumante wine or muscatel, and even wines with more body. It’s a very traditional Christmas dessert in Milan (and lots of spots in Europe) and since it’s been exported throughout the world, it’s also a traditional Christmas dessert at my home.

Recipes for Panettone

I love these recipes:

• Perfect Italian Panettone Made in a Bread Machine and Baked in the Oven from Christina's Cucina.
• Overnight Panettone from King Arthur Baking.
• Keto Panettone from Gnom Gnom.

Places to buy Panettone

• Gustiamo and Nudo both coming from Italy!
• There are a variety of options on Amazon!

Great Panettone Cookbooks

• The Italian Baker from Carol Field.
• Panettone – The King of Bread from Jimmy Griffin.

Tiramisu

Tiramisu is a cold desert that is assembled in layers. There isn’t a unique recipe, but it always consists of a solid ingredient moistened in coffee (biscuits, sponge cake…) on which they put alternately a cream whose base is beaten eggs, sugar, and sometimes Mascarpone cheese. Finally, it usually has cocoa powder on top. Once finished it has to remain in the refrigerator for a few hours before serving.

Recipes for Tiramisu

I love these recipes:

• Tiramisu from Natasha's Kitchen.
• Tiramusu from Tastes Better from Scratch.
• Low carb Tiramisu from Wholesome Yum.

Places to buy Tiramisu

• Luxury version from Williams Sonoma.
• Bakery Nouveau in the Seattle area sells their tiramisu online.
• Mackenize Limited has a delicious tiramusi!

Great Tiramisu Cookbooks

• The Italian Baker from Carol Field.
• Panettone – The King of Bread from Jimmy Griffin.

Bonus: Limoncello

Technically not a dessert but rather alcohol from the South of Italy that runs in the digestive family, but as I often have it in lieu of dessert, I'm including it in my favorites!

Recipes for Limoncello

I love these recipes:

• Homemade Limoncello from Recipes from Italy.
• How to Make Limoncello from Wholefully.
• Homemade Limoncello Recipe (Sugar-Free!) from Couple in the Kitchen.

I also love this recipe for Limoncello tiramisu from Christina's Cucina!

Places to buy Limoncello

• Buy Limoncello online at Amazon.

Great Limoncello Cookbooks

• The Drunken Botanist from Amy Stewart.
• Citrus from Catherine Phipps.

How about you? Have you had any of these amazing desserts?

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