The Sfogliatella

Commonly called the lobster-tail in America because of its shape, also referred to as “sfogliatell,” this pastry intrigued me before my trip to the south of Italy.  I have to admit that part of my interest resulted from the sfogliatella’s spotlight in Cake Boss Season 1, Episode 7 (“Doves, Ducks, and Delicacies”), in which Buddy makes an ENORMOUS sfogliatella as a gift from a father-to-be to his expecting wife.

During my recent trip to Naples and Amalfi, I took advantage of its prevalence in every bar and pasticceria to explore its many varieties.

Here’s a catalogue of the sfogliatelle I sampled (in just five short days):

1.  The pastry sfogliatelle, filled with a ricotta-citrus cream (studded with candied orange rind.)  From Da Rita in Sorrento.

2.  This is a mini-sfogliatelle al limoncello, from Andrea Pansa in Amalfi.  Filled with chilled limoncello-flavored cream, it was my favorite version of the sfogliatelle, possibly because it had the ideal pastry-to-cream ratio.

3. Sfogliatella alla crema, from a really cute bar in Amalfi whose name I don’t remember.  Unfortunately, this was my LEAST favorite sfogliatelle, even though it’s certainly the most aesthetically appealing.  The cream inside was not that wonderful and there was way too much of it.

4. Believe it or not, this is also a sfogliatella with a different shell (also from Da Rita in Sorrento.)  According to Parla Food, this is a sfogliatella frolla, while the others are sfogliatella riccia.  Its lack of the fabulously textured shell is certainly a strike against it, but I liked this one.  It had the exact same filling as Sfogliatelle Number 1 above.