Miascia

Miascia is an ancient cucina povera dessert originating from the area of Lago di Como. This little known staple of cucina povera has no fixed ingredients, but it's usually made with a combination of day-old or stale bread (pan poss in local dialect), butter, milk, eggs, lemon zest, apples, pears, sultanas, sugar, flour, polenta flour, and rosemary. The bread is cut into cubes and soaked in milk, then mixed with the eggs, lemon zest, apple and pear slices, sugar, sultanas, and both types of flour. Once baked, the cake is often sprinkled with chopped rosemary, giving miascia its unique flavor. In the past, miascia was served on special occasions, but nowadays it is often enjoyed as a simple breakfast. Accompanied by a scoop of vanilla ice cream and paired with a fortified wine, it can also be transformed into an even better dessert than it already is.