Zelten, a sweet bread made from dried fruit, is a telltale sign of Christmas in the region of Trentino-Alto Adige. Derived from the German word "selten" which means "sometimes," zelten originated as a winter cake. While dried fruit is now available year-round now, it used to only be accessible during winter.
Quintessential "mountain cuisine," zelten is prepared with accessible and preservable ingredients. Although the recipe changes slightly from valley to valley and family to family, the dough always contains flour, eggs, butter, sugar, and yeast, with the addition of dried fruit, mainly raisins, dried figs, almonds, pine nuts, and walnuts.
From Saint Lucia to Epiphany
It's not clear for which holiday this dessert was originally created. One tradition states that it was prepared in the 18th century for the December 13 feast day of St. Lucia while another tradition, claims that the cake was prepared on December 21, the eve of the feast day of St. Thomas. During the preparation, an activity in which the whole family participated, the women prayed to the saint for love.
The mother would etch a cross into the top of the zelten before baking, and once ready, it was placed in the cupboard. There are also conflicting versions of when the cake should be consumed. The first one claims Christmas Day, another one argues the Epiphany. According to Christmas tradition, the family ate zelten after returning from midnight mass, while others stated that recently engaged women would donate their family's cake.
The recipe from the 1700s
Zelten is rooted in centuries-old confectionery tradition. An 18th-century manuscript describes celteno, a predecessor of Zelten. The recipe reads: "Take some Candia grapes, raisins, pine nuts, peeled almonds cut long, minutely cut lemon peel, aniseed seeds, candied citron, cinnamon powder, a little sugar, and a little flour and mix everything together. Take a small piece of brewer's yeast, the size of a walnut...".
Each valley has a recipe
Today zelten is produced throughout Trentino-Alto Adige and the recipe differs due to the historical availability of certain ingredients. The South Tyrolean Zelten from Bolzano/Bozen is rich in fruit, while the Trentino Zelten is made with less fruit. In South Tyrol, it's not always circular, but rather heart-shaped, oval, rectangular, elongated.