The snow has finally melted, the sun is out until 7PM…and our Easter treats are here!

Our scheduled shipment from the famed pastry company Loison occurred on a particular Thursday when the federal government was shut down due to snow (yes, this always seems to happen).  When the shipment landed on our doorstep on Monday, the it seemed much more appropriate. As the sun streamed through our window we unwrapped the beautiful cakes and chocolate eggs from our friends across the ocean.

Loison is a third generation company, which over 75 years of experience and progress. They use DOC ingredients including fresh eggs from safe farms, milk, butter and cream produced in the mountains of Italy, superfine flour, and top-grade Italian sugar. We also favor them for the sophisticated way they package their products, which evokes the style of old Italian pastry shops where no detail is too small.

The Colombe, or traditional Easter cake, is a spongy vanilla cake with candied citrus peel, in the shape of a dove. This cake brings legendary stories…

“The oldest tells of Alboin, King of the Lombards. Upon his victorious entry in Pavia in 572, on Easter Sunday, he was given a sweet bread in the shape of a dove as a tribute to peace. Another legend tells that, at the time of Emperor Frederick Barbarossa, two doves rested upon the banners of the Lombard warriors infusing them with a noble spirit. But it is definitely during the time of the Spanish ruling in Milan that the dove became the Easter dessert par excellence. In 1552, a dove appeared, accompanied by an angel, over the Church of Santa Maria delle Grazie (Holy Mary of Grace)  to stop its demolition, which had been ordered by Ferrante Gonzaga for military purposes. Since then, the city’s gratitude is remembered through this delicious dove-shaped sweet bread.”

Ah yes, Milano has remembered the wonderful dove since 1552… yet I found another story, from renowned travel guide Burt Wolf.

“The Colomba is said to have originated as a result of the Battle of Legnano, which took place just after Easter in 1176.  Things were not going well for the Milanese as they defended their city against an attack by Barbarosa… until  three doves flew out of a nearby church.  The birds appear to have flown an air-support mission that dropped bad luck on Barbarosa and delivered victory to the Milanese.  The cake reminds Milan of this triumph.”

Another triumph for Milan? The mechanization of cake production. I dug a little further and learned of Angelo Motta, a baker from Milan who wanted to make and sell panettone all year round…and thus, the dove cake.

But no matter what the history, the doves or the entrepreneurial baker, there is no doubt that these cakes are a delight and make a fabulous present.

The Italian treat I remember from my youth, however, is the giant Easter egg. My Italian Grandmother sent my family one when I was in elementary school. My brother and I unwrapped it from the box and placed it, eyes bulging in awe, on the mantlepiece. Off which my mother grabbed it – and ran shrieking down the hallway! The playful chase, and game of catch, that ensued lasted in my memory far longer than the chocolate of the egg (which, to be fair, lasted a long time as well).

Italians traditionally do not have easter egg hunts, and so the giant easter egg is the centerpiece. Sometimes, they get quite extravagant, as this report from NPR details.

At Via Umbria, we have them in milk chocolate and dark chocolate, with beautiful wrapping, of course. They have a prize inside as well — but you have to buy one to find out what it is!

So when you see the little blue Ape in the window in Georgetown, brimming with our new treats, make a stop. Come sample these springtime cakes, and share your Easter and spring traditions with us.

— Elsa Bruno at Via Umbria