The perfect souvenir from Burano is not lace (originals can cost thousands of euros), nor is it murrina glass (which comes from Murano). Go to Burano to buy bussolà.
What are they?
These are biscuits made from shortbread with lots of egg yolks, originally made for Easter but now a regular dessert everywhere in Venice. They have a long history and can also be called bussolai. Just don’t confuse them with Chioggia bussolà, which are not sweet. They’re sold everywhere, in every bakery and mini-market on the island, and restaurants serve them with Vin Santo dessert wine, in which they are dipped. It’s practically impossible to say which ones are the best. They all think they make the best, and will whisper little secrets about those made by others. Some have made a business of them on the mainland, some have changed the recipe, some have dared to add chocolate or other ingredients as a marketing ploy. There are also different biscuits with the same name on the label, even though they separated years ago and prefer to say nothing about the subject.
Our Lady of the Bussolà
Carmelina Palmisano is the undisputed signora of the bussolà. Her store is the most famous and she’s made a fortune with her biscuits. There’s a small establishment in Jesolo, but the giant cookies (the original size is 7 inches wide) are still made in the workshop behind the store, every day.
The other Palmisanos
Her family has been making bussolà since 1926. And since the 1950s, they have also made them pistachio flavored, chocolate flavored and coconut flavored, and they even patented the Buranellini®, the first filled bussolà in the world.
Costantini and Garbo
There are others aside from the Palmisanos. The Panificio Costantini and the Pasticceria Garbo also sell the classic cookie from Burano. People whisper that Costantini’s has the best, but stop by Garbo’s to see a real vintage store!
Carmelina’s recipe
8 cups flour, 12 egg yolks, 3 cups sugar, 10 1/2 oz. butter and a little vanilla. Mix everything together and then shape the cookies. Bake the cookies at 400°F until they are just barely golden. The classic ones are about as long as a span and weigh 10 oz. when baked – just like the ones that used to be made for fishers.
Pictures by Daniele Mari