The rollò, or rollò nisseno, or ricotta roll from Caltanissetta (from the French "roulé"), is a typical dessert from the Nisseno area, produced by local pastry chefs. It is consumed year-round, as it is not tied to any specific event or occasion. This dessert, along with the ricotta raviola, originated in Caltanissetta.[1]

Nisseno roll in miniature format

History

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This dessert, together with the Raviola di ricotta nissena, is a dessert that originated in Caltanissetta.[2][3][4][5]

The rollò likely emerged in the last decades of the 19th century when the influence of Swiss pastry-making arrived in Caltanissetta through pastry chefs like Luigi Caflisch in Palermo, Alessandro Caviezel, and Ulrico Greuter in Catania.[6][7]

The rollò is structurally similar but not ingredient-wise to the Swiss roll—a type of sponge cake rolled and filled with cream or jam invented in Central Europe in the 19th century—the rollò nisseno also resembles an international tradition of rolled desserts found in many countries, including Italy's Christmas log. However, the absolute uniqueness of the rollò nisseno remains due to typical Sicilian pastry ingredients such as sheep's ricotta and pasta reale.[citation needed]

Ingredients

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A sectioned rollò

Whole eggs; flour, ground almonds, sugar, bitter cocoa powder that characterizes the sponge cake that in turn rolls the sheep ricotta and the heart of marzipan (marzipan). In addition, honey, green marzipan, sweetened and sifted ricotta, dark chocolate and/or chopped pistachios.[8]

Some pastry chefs cut the rolls horizontally so as to have a constant thickness of the cake, others even obliquely so as to have a thinner part. The thickness of the green marzipan heart varies, the thickness of the chocolate sponge cake varies, the garnish varies with pistachio grains with or without dark chocolate grains.[9]

Notes

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See also

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References

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  1. ^ Salvatore Farina. "Rollò di ricotta, del maestro Lillo De Fraia". Associazione culturale "Zona Creativa" - Caffè Caltanissetta. Archived from the original on 13 May 2016. Retrieved 12 October 2024.
  2. ^ Giuseppe Scibetta (16 October 2011). "I dolci dei migliori pasticcieri siciliani esposti come "gioielli" all'Alberghiero" (PDF). La Sicilia. p. 39. Retrieved 11 October 2024.
  3. ^ "Sapori del nisseno" (in Italian). www.isulasicilia.it. Archived from the original on 13 January 2017. Retrieved 11 October 2024.
  4. ^ Giancarlo Lo Sicco (3 January 2002). "Maccheroni con pomodori vino e stigghiola ripiena" (in Italian). la Repubblica.it. Retrieved 11 October 2024.
  5. ^ Lucia Dolce (28 June 2007). "La cucina siciliana" (in Italian). www.ecapcl.it. Archived from the original on 13 January 2017. Retrieved 11 October 2024.
  6. ^ "Storia della pasticceria siciliana". Associazione Duciezio (in Italian). Retrieved 12 October 2024.
  7. ^ Artusi, Maurizio. "I primi 90 anni del Maestro Luca Caviezel". CucinArtusi (in Italian). Retrieved 12 October 2024.
  8. ^ "Dolci natalizi: 13 roll cakes decorati - BuzzNews" (in Italian). BuzzNews.it. 23 December 2014. Archived from the original on 13 January 2017. Retrieved 12 October 2024.
  9. ^ "Guida alle cose da fare e visitare a Caltanissetta". Esperienze, tour, escursioni e consigli per scoprire la Sicilia, l'isola più bella del mondo (in Italian). 16 September 2018. Retrieved 12 October 2024.
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