The Sweetest Things of Naples

Sprinkled sugar, swirling sweet cream, caremelized bon bons and rows and rows of pastries fill the isles of Neapolitan Pastry bars.


Isles of typical Neapolitan pastries



Entrance to a Bar featuring typical drinks like Nocciolato

Bars in Italy are the coffee shops that serve sweet treats along with your espresso. In Naples, the pastries are as various as the history. Breakfast in Italy is sweet, not salty like the typical British breakfast of eggs and bacon. I have gotten used to having sweet things in Italy for breakfast. In the North my Desenzano sisters call their croissant a "Brioche", but in the south it is called a Cornetto and coffee is served with a side glass of water. Our week in Naples was begun by seeing the impressive sun rise over the Vesuvio, the blue green waters of the Mediteranean sparkle happily with the morning rays and the sweet smell of pastries linger around the doorways of bars.

Rise and Shine in Naples!

Mr. Vesuvio exclaims "Good morning, Sunshine! Now go have a pastry before I explode!"

My favorite pastry was the Sfogliatella frolla. It is a sweet buttery bun filled with a crumbly yet creamy warm center. Ah, perfect for breakfast, a snack or just to warm your hands on a chilly spring day. However, to avoid discrimination and be well informed (excuses, excuses, I know) I tried all of these yummy flakey buttery pastries:

Sfogliatella frolla

the gooey sweet center of my plain sfogliatella

Sfogliatella Riccia (curly version of sfogliatella) the pastry shell is layered and crunchy

All Babà. This soft pastry is covered in liquor and caremalized sugar. It orginates from Poland called "babka" but passed through France and eventually to Naples in 1836 where Neapolitans modified the recipe using a dough rising tequnique and local liquors that makes the babà a truly Neapolitan delicacy.

Babà filled with cream and topped with berries.

Cassata Napolitana. This sugar coated cake has a base of Pan di Spagna (soft cake) and a body of sweetened ricotta cheese. It is then glazed with sugar.

This lemon pastry is orginally from the Coast of Sorrento in the region of Naples. The base is from Pan di Spagna then layered with a lemon cream and bathed in Limoncello. I loved this and would eat it every day if I could.



Zeppola di San Giuseppe. This is similar to a fried doughnut topped with sweet cream and candied cherries and sprinkled with confectioners sugar. It is typical to see these in Naples around St. Josephs Day because that is Father's Day in Italy (the same as Joseph the husband of the Virgin Mary). St. Joseph teaches fathers how to be dads.The pastries are called Giuseppe or Joseph after him. Any dad would love a box full of these!

I'm glad I tried every one of these. They were all freshly made with local products and with the local traditions. I hope to learn how to make a few of them in the future!