One of the oldest sweets

Not many people know that the crostata (jam tart), a classic among grandma's bakes, may be the oldest sweet in the Italian pastry tradition, and it is not easy to trace its origins.

There are several folk legends about its birth, dating back to very ancient times.

The first dates back to pre-Christian times and features a beautiful siren named Parthenope.

According to this myth, the beautiful Parthenope, who had settled in the Gulf of Naples, left her home in the depths every spring to rise to the surface and delight the local people with her sweet song.

As a sign of thanks, they decided to send seven maidens bearing the seven most precious things they had: flour, a symbol of strength and wealth; ricotta, the fruit of the shepherds' hard work; eggs, a symbol of rebirth and the renewal of life; soft wheat boiled in milk, a symbol of the two realms (land and sea); orange blossom water, a symbol of thanks for nature's gifts; spices, representing distant peoples; and sugar, symbolising the sweetness of the siren's song.

Parthenope joyfully accepted these gifts and took them before the throne of the gods, who turned them into an exquisite sweet, so good that the siren decided to give it back to the generous people.

But beyond myths and legends, it seems that the credit for inventing this delicious tart goes to a nun from the convent of San Gregorio Armeno, who created it in honour of the Resurrection of Jesus Christ. It is also said that the strips of shortcrust pastry on top of the tart recall the grilles through which cloistered nuns attended religious services.

This sweet of “humble” origins enjoyed great success over the centuries, even reaching the tables of the nobility and eventually the Bourbon court. Indeed, it is said to have been the only sweet able to make Queen Maria Theresa of Austria, wife of King Ferdinand II of Bourbon, nicknamed “the Queen who never smiles”, smile.

The crostata is a delicious sweet for any occasion: crumbly and delicate, lovely to enjoy with friends or to give your children as an afternoon snack. A real treat!