Pesche di Prato recipe

Prato is definitely the best place to be for a sweet breakfast or snack. The city boasts a high concentration of top pastry shops and bakeries. Among the sweet specialties that you'll find in the city centre and surrounding area are Pesche di Prato (Peaches from Prato): rounded brioches soaked in alkermes liqueur and paired with custard, then covered with sugar, resembling the shape and skin of natural peaches.

It's said they were first made at the end of March in 1861 during a huge dinner party in Prato’s Piazza del Duomo celebrating Italian unification. The dessert was the crowning glory of the whole meal, though. The chef served confectionery peaches and they were such a roaring success that Pratese confectioners began making them immediately and they have been around ever since.

Since I knew that the recipe isn’t very difficult (though you do need lots of time and patience), I travelled to Prato to met Paolo Sacchetti: one of the best Tuscan and Italian Pastry chefs. He has his famous pastry shop behind Piazza del Duomo, where you can stop for a coffee and sweet merenda. Here is his recipe.