The handcrafted aroma that makes the difference
The homemade aroma for colomba is a little Easter ritual: simple, quick and super fragrant. It should be prepared a bit in advance, preferably the day before, so the citrus and other flavors have time to meld into a unique, enveloping scent. Besides the colomba, I often use it to enrich leavened doughs, spring cakes and delicately flavored cookies.
You can use it to make these recipes
- Difficulty: Very easy
- Cost: Inexpensive
- Rest time: 1 Day
- Preparation time: 5 Minutes
- Portions: 2 Pieces
- Cooking methods: No-cook
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: Easter
Ingredients for homemade colomba aroma
- 1 pod vanilla (or 2 tsp vanilla extract)
- 1 lemon (zest only)
- 1 orange (zest only)
- 2.5 tbsp wildflower honey
- 2.5 tsp granulated sugar
- 1 tsp amaretto liqueur
- 1 vial almond extract
Tools
- 1 Food processor Bimby tm31 – tm5 – tm6 – tm7
- 1 Blender
- 1 Spatula
- 1 Jar
Preparation of homemade colomba aroma
Preparing the aroma is really easy: first wash and thoroughly dry the citrus, then cut the zest carefully taking care not to remove the white pith. Make sure to use organic citrus with edible peel.
WITH THE BIMBY: Put the citrus zests, the seeds from the vanilla pod (or the vanilla extract) and the sugar into the bowl (1). Blend at speed 9 for 10 seconds, scrape the mixture down with the spatula and repeat the operation (2). Add the honey, the liqueur and the almond extract (3) and blend at speed 4 for 30 seconds (4).
WITHOUT THE BIMBY: Place the citrus zests, the seeds from the vanilla pod (or the extract) and the sugar in the blender. Pulse at medium speed for a few seconds, gather the mixture with a spatula and repeat. Add the liqueur, the almond extract and the honey, then blend again until you obtain a paste.
TO FINISH: Pour the mixture into a glass jar or airtight container, store it in the refrigerator and let it rest for at least one day before use.
TIPS & NOTES
The amount of aroma obtained will be sufficient to flavor two colombe of about 2.2 lb each, but you can reduce or increase it according to your taste. Any leftovers can be used to flavor cakes, brioche or cookies. Consume within one week, keeping it refrigerated and covered with plastic wrap.
You can also freeze it, for example in ice cube trays, so when needed you can simply use a “cube”. Thaw it in the refrigerator.
