The Bunet, very good dessert born in Turin

The bunet (or bonet, using the traditional spelling) is a typical ancient dessert of Piedmont, specially in Torino (Turin). It is a dark pudding, of the same family of the crème caramel desserts, and it was already diffused in the 13th century’s court banquets.

Its name means hat or a toque.
According to the official interpretation, this name refers to the shape of the copper mould used to cook it. Others believe that the dessert was called bunet because it was served at the end of the meal, the same way as hats are the last garment to wear before going out.

Bunet’s main ingredients are eggs, sugar, milk, liqueur (usually rum) and amaretto biscuits. Its dark colour is given by cocoa, which was added to the recipe only in the 15th century following the discovery of America and the later diffusion of this ingredient in Europe. The original recipe, today less common, is the white bunet.

There are many variations to the original recipe. For example, some use ingredients such as hazelnuts, which are typical of the area, or coffee or cognac instead of rum.

Bunet Dessert