From November 13 to 21, the now historic Festa del Torrone Cremona returns, a sweet event now in its 23rd edition where it will be possible to taste and learn more about all the variations of nougat that exist in Italy, through meetings, showcooking, tastings and more, to discover the many flavors of nougat.
As you travel around the Boot, you can taste many variations of the nougat but the basic ingredients always remain egg whites, honey, almonds or hazelnuts, which are then declined, sweetened, and enriched with specialties from each region to make the dessert loved by young and old alike a delicacy that unites Italy from north to south. As for Cremona, the story goes that nougat was officially born on October 26, 1441 at the wedding of Bianca Maria Visconti to Francesco Sforza. The cake was shaped like the Torrazzo and, therefore, was called “nougat.”
Precisely to celebrate this event and this much-loved typical product, the entire city of Cremona is celebrating the sweetest event of the year, which for 2021 has chosen“Dulcis In Fundo” as its theme.
All the events of the Cremona Nougat Festival 2021
The kermis Cremona Nougat Festival, promoted by the City of Cre mona and the Cremona Chamber of Commerce under the patronage of the Lombardy Region and with sponsors such as Sperlari, Rivoltini Alimentare Dolciaria and Vergani, includes many events and initiatives that aim to raise awareness of the exquisite nougat in all its aspects. Enchanting guests will be a ‘nougat installation in the shape of a chessboard, in which every single piece has been faithfully reproduced on a 1:1 scale with rooks, horses, bishops, women and kings in nougat and chocolate. A chess champion will challenge blindfolded all who wish to play.
As every year, there will be no shortage of prestigious awards from the Cremona Nougat Festival, including the Goodness Award, established to recognize acts of generosity away from the spotlight, for dedicating one’s time and life to helping others. The Torrone D’oro award will feature Nicolò Govoni, a very young writer and human rights activist, while for the first time there will be space for the online contest The Plate , in which restaurants and pastry shops from all over Italy compete to the sound of nougat.
Participation is free; each dish created, which can be either savory or sweet, must contain nougat as a key ingredient, in any type of shape and texture. The videos will be uploaded to the official website and voted on by the public, and the winner will be honored during the event where they will try their hand at showcooking to replicate the winning dish and can be tasted by the audience in attendance. And there will also be no shortage of appointments with art thanks to a photo exhibition and to one dedicated to the world of comics.
The guests of the kermis
There is also no shortage of guests who will take part in the Cremona Nougat Festival 2021. Unmissable date for Saturday, Nov. 20, with showcooking by Master Pastry Chef Nicholas Giotti and the Confectionery Damarides Russi with the airbrushing of nougat: a live demonstration of the creation of a real work thanks to a decoration technique made by Giotti, who will practice and explain all the steps necessary for creation. Admission is free but reservations are required, and there will be a free Rivoltini Alimentare Dolciaria nougat tasting for participants at the end of the performance.
The Ambassador of Taste recognition of this 2021 edition of the Cremona Nougat Festival will be awarded to Andrea Tortora, the fourth-generation son of pastry chefs and with an international resume-from Paris to London, Singapore to Venice-for years at the helm of pastry at the 3-Michelin-starred St. Hubertus restaurant.
And among the many scheduled events is an all-pink showcooking for a great challenge between female chefs from East Lombardy, which groups the territories of Brescia, Bergamo, Cremona, and Mantua-recognized in 2017 as the European Region of Gastronomy.
The rendezvous for the Cremona Nougat Festival is in the streets of downtown, and if you are arriving from Milan, don’t forget the departure of the Locomotiva a Vapore (Steam Locomotive ) where travelers can sit in the legendary “Centoporte” carriages pulled by the FS Gr. 740-278 steam locomotive, built in 1922 and therefore almost 100 years old. It is one of the few remaining examples of this group used in the past for both freight and passenger trains, now available to join the joy and fun of the Cremona Nougat Festival.
