October 6, 2017, 3:48 pm | Read time: 4 minutes
Tiramisu is one of the most delicious desserts Italy has to offer and is popular worldwide. However, for a long time, two Italian regions have been arguing over where tiramisu was originally invented. Now, the dispute has culminated in an action that even involves politicians.
Every Italian region is immensely proud of the dishes and meals it has created, as food in Italy is akin to a religion. Now, a heated debate has erupted over one of the country’s most popular desserts, which can rightly be called a full-blown dispute.
Two Regions, Two Inventors
Sugar, egg, mascarpone, and espresso. With these ingredients, Norma Pielli, the owner of a hotel in the town of Tolmezzo in the northern Italian region of Friuli Venezia Giulia, is said to have created a dessert in the 1950s.
One day, a group of skiers reportedly returned exhausted from the mountains. The dessert is said to have given them new strength. In Italian, they said it lifted them up–“tirare sù.”
In the late 1960s, pastry chef Roberto “Loly” Linguanotto is said to have invented the same dessert in a restaurant in the city of Treviso near Venice. Because the dish was so delicious that one was almost magically drawn to it, they called it “Tiramesù” in the Venetian dialect. Later, it became tiramisu as it gained popularity throughout Italy.
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Entry in List Causes a Stir
Due to these two stories, the regions of Friuli Venezia Giulia and Veneto have long both claimed to have invented tiramisu. Now, the debate has gained new momentum. Friuli Venezia Giulia had the dessert added to the list of dishes typical for the region at the end of July.
The so-called “Pat” register clearly stands behind the EU-wide designation of origin “DOC,” which, for example, allows only ham produced in Parma to be called Parma ham. But its symbolic power in a country where food is considered sacred should not be underestimated. With the “Pat” recognition, the region has declared itself the inventor of the dessert, causing the competition from Veneto to boil over.
“Tiramisu has status symbol in Italy,” says Valentina Chirra from the management of the Pompi Tiramisu chain in Rome. The dessert ranks alongside quality products like wine, mozzarella, or Parma ham, for which “Made in Italy” is famous, Chirra says. That’s why people argue so passionately over a simple dessert.
President: “A Disgrace”
The debate gained traction when the Ministry of Agriculture approved tiramisu on the “Pat” list for Friuli Venezia Giulia after the region submitted an application. “A disgrace,” said the president of the Veneto region. He wants to challenge the decision and have it reviewed to ensure the process was conducted properly. Rome tersely and formally stated in a communication that it had merely “applied the existing law.”
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Second Region Follows Suit
In truth, the government in Veneto had neglected to submit an application to claim the origin of tiramisu for itself. A politician from the region said they now want to catch up to “at least” obtain the same status as Friuli Venezia Giulia. It is possible for multiple regions to have the same dish listed. The dish must have been traditionally made there for at least 25 years.
Even though Italians carry out the dispute with fervent passion, it is not purely an Italian phenomenon to argue over food, says the president of the German Confectioners’ Association, Gerhard Schenk. Every country has recipes it defends with pride. Just as people in Germany argue over who invented the Black Forest cake, so it is in Italy with tiramisu. “Customers don’t care anyway; they just want it to taste good,” Schenk says.
“Romantic Quarrel”
Whether tiramisu comes from Friuli Venezia Giulia or Veneto doesn’t matter to Pompi manager Chirra. “In the end, it’s a romantic quarrel, not a real dispute.” Both regions identify with a product that is popular worldwide. “We should focus more on what we Italians have achieved as a country,” Chirra says. That’s why the bags at Pompi read: “Una storia italiana,” an Italian story.