Ciambellone

Ciambellone is an Italian version of the many Easter breads that occur across the continent, celebrating the cook's ability to have in the house (and eat!) the eggs, butter, sugar and other rich ingredients that are finally permitted again after the long Lenten fasting period. The bread is a sweet one, and heavy enough to be considered a cake.

The name ciambellone has over recent years come to mean almost any kind of ring cake, and appears in countless other forms containing chocolate and numerous other flavorings. But this is the most basic recipe.

When asked to select two of the most famous cakes in the country to send to the European Union's 50th birthday celebrations as the "national birthday cake", Italy chose the ciambellone as one of them.

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