In Abruzzo there is a Christmas cake, which became famous, thanks to the poet Gabriele D’Annunzio, it was in fact, his favorite Christmas cake!
“It ‘so many’ bbone stu parrozze nine that seems na pazzie de San Ciattè, had put on a great forne tea the lands worked by lu bbove, the fat and lustre lands that if coce … and that due a few a few chiù doce de cosa cosa doce … “, in this sonnet written by Gabriele D’Annunzio and dedicated to Parrozzo is the magic of this ancient sweet of the Abruzzese tradition.
The history of the Parrozzo originated in Abruzzo, around 1920, created by the pastry chef Pescarese Luigi D’Amico, who had a great friendship with the famous poet and writer Gabriele D’Annunzio.Luigi decided to create a cake that resembled the so-called uncooked bread, a kind of rustic loaf, usually prepared by the farmers with cornmeal. He used the eggs to give the mixture the yellow color given by the corn; the crushed almonds to reproduce the consistency of the loaf and the dark chocolate which finally represented the dark color of the scorched crust of the bread.To better understand the nature and the tradition of this sweet, with an exquisite and unique taste all over the world! We were guided by one of the most famous pastry chefs in Abruzzesi and who today continues the tradition of Parrozzo in his oven “L’Antico Pastaio” of Francavilla al Mare in the province of Pescara, he is called Vincenzo Consalvi.
Intervista a Vincenzo Consalvi
1) Hi Vincenzo, what are the secrets of the parrozzo?
No secret because now the recipe is public, just knowing how to combine heart, mind and hands x the union of the ingredients.
2) What distinguishes it from other Christmas sweets and makes it unique?
It is distinguished by its shape and the ability of the ingredients combined give a special taste that I’m sorry to eat at any time of day, from breakfast, to dinner, especially if accompanied with a good glass of Aurum liqueur (another typical Abruzzese)
3) Do you have a long process for the realization?
The production processes are not substantially long, but require a lot of patience and firmness.Patience for slow cooking and firmness for drying and decoration.
4) How come this sweet is not so good in other stores outside of Abruzzo or abroad?
Unfortunately, it is only found in our area because the products used do not allow long-term expiry. We tried the pastry D’amico, but did not have great results if not many problems. Then being a dessert with chocolate coating is not recommended for any exports.
5) Would you recommend everyone to have at least one parrozzo under the tree this Christmas?
Yes … being one of the many producers of Parrozzo I’m trying to advertise it as much as possible, along with the artisan panettone I make in my oven.
Maximo De Marco began his career at an early age as a dancer, model, actor, singer, training and artistically perfecting internationally, winning a grant issued by the EEC (European Economic Community) that will lead him to study with teachers of World fame, later becoming author, director, choreographer, discographer, designer and writer, thanks to all these working experiences in the Entertainment World, today Maximo De Marco is one of the most important and internationally recognized Art Director , Nominated Art Director to Vitam by the Vatican, for the WYD and Friends of Pope Francis (World Youth Day), Official Member of the International Dance Council of UNESCO and Premio Cavallo D’Argento Rai (Italian Radio Television), Career of the Music Life Tv Awards (SKY) and of Cantagiro as best Artistic Director, Amen Prize for Literature with special mention at the International Exhibition the book of Turin in 2013 and winner of the Salerno International Film Festival in 2017 with his religious historical film “Petali di Rosa”. In his career as Art Director, he has directed Televisions, Radio, Magazine, Theaters, and great Star of Music and Performing Arts, including the English Pop Star Boy George, for his World Tour in the 90s “, the winner of The Voice of Italy Sister Cristina, and other artists such as: Franco Simone, Teo Mammuccari, Fabrizio Frizzi, Antonella Ponziani, Claudia Koll…