Art That Is Good Enough To Eat

When I talk about art that is good enough to eat of course I am talking about art depicting items of food and drink that are so yummy it makes you want to eat them. Or, in the case of a cappuccino, drink it.

Art That Is Good Enough To Eat

I mean, just look at the image I took in our favorite bakers/bar in Tavernelle, Umbria. (Dolci e Tradizioni). Can’t you just imagine biting into one of those eclairs and feeling the cream squeezing out the side onto your lips??? Now that is what I call messy food but sometimes that is the best kind – am I right?

Food Tasting Is An Important Job

We take our job as food tasters round here very seriously. Barnet Boy and I had a box of cakes from the bakers, each was two bites big they looked wonderful (you can see the cream horns in the image). This is my summary of the results of our experiment (you can’t take the researcher out of the cake eater LOL):

1. Two inch pastry horn sprinkled with crunchy sugar and filled with whipped cream – nice pastry but not much flavor interesting when cream squirted out of the end 6/10 (see picture).
2. Two x one inch meringues sandwiched together with whipped cream and decorated with a fresh raspberry – fantastic, light meringue, yummy, shame we only had one each 9.5/10.
3. One inch choux pastry filled with whipped cream – disappointing, no flavor, cream went everywhere when you bit it but that was part of the fun 7/10.
4. One inch square treble chocolate cheesecake with cocoa topping – two bites of heaven 9.5/10.
5. One inch square raspberry cheesecake with toasted pistacchio shavings on top – a bit bland until you got the hit of the roast pistacchios which really lifted it 8/10.

A Proud Cappuccino Addict

Personally, I used to be a cappuccino addict and was proud of it. Unfortunately I had to give up drinking coffee – what a sad day that was! The coffee shown above was made for me by the barista at the bar in Tavernelle. I love the way the pattern on the top of a cappuccino is always different. As you can see, this one is a heart shape. The cappuccinos served here in Italy are smaller and not as hot as the ones we get in the big coffee shops in the UK. Up until a few years ago we were not offered chocolate powder sprinkled on the top (notice mine is ‘clean’).

The bar in Tavernelle, and many other local bars, has started offering soya cappuccinos which it makes sense given the number of people who avoid milk products. It also coincides with a rise in the amount of vegan products that have become available here in Italy over the last year or so.

There are now ‘vegan meat slices’ available in our local supermarket and even some vegan ready meals. And remember that ready meals are not something you get to the same degree as in the UK. So to have vegan-specific ready meals is really something.

Hungry For A Taste Of Italy?

Have I got you hungry for the taste of Italy yet? If not here is a shot of a typical breakfast at the bar in Tavernelle. This has to count as art good enough to eat.  The cornetto (croissant) is baked fresh on the premises, sliced and filled with wonderful apricot jam that is not too sweet. It goes perfectly with the morning cappuccino. I should mention price of course. In 2016 it cost €2.20 ($2.47, £1.87). In 2022 you can add a euro to that price which is an indication of how much prices have risen. But I leave you to imagine how much this would cost you in your local cafe. I know how much I pay when I visit to the UK and that wouldn’t buy me the coffee!

This article was originally published in 2016 and updated and republished 4 March 2022.

Before you go

My name is Dorothy Berry-Lound an artist and writer. You can find out more about my art and writing at https://dorothyberryloundart.com.

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Thank you for reading!