Retire Early Lifestyle
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In 1991 Billy and Akaisha Kaderli retired at the age of 38. Now, into their 4th decade of this financially independent lifestyle, they invite you to take advantage of their wisdom and experience.

The Fabulous Pastries and Breads of Gaeta, Italy

(Pronounced Guh-AY-tuh)

Billy and Akaisha Kaderli

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We have mentioned before how the pastries in Italy are beyond remarkable.

Bakeries and bread shops are everywhere and the variety is spellbinding.

Our first encounter with Italy's 8th wonder of the world was during our stay in Anzio, a small coastal town about an hour's drive from Rome.

But now we are in another coastal town named Gaeta, and the game has just escalated.

Take a look for yourselves below.

Various breads and pastries

The top shelf holds donuts and croissants. The second shelf offers fruit pies and the bottom shelf shows you some of the many different types of bread.

Now lest you think these all these loaves taste the same, I would encourage you to try several and compare.

Bread is a main feature in Italian meals. It is used to sop up sauce, dip in herbed olive oil, used for sandwiches or lathered with soft cheese and eaten as a snack.

Pane and other yeasty breads

The bread on the top shelf has a springy texture on the inside and a crunchy crust on the outside.

The bottom shelf has a baguette of sorts called pane (PAH-nay). Not as narrow as a French baguette, this bread will last a couple of days before it goes stale.

Italian cornettos

In the south of Italy, croissants are called cornettos. In the north of Italy, they are called brioche.

It is probably the number one breakfast meal the Italians have along with an espresso or cappuccino.

These cornettos can be plain, as you see above, or they can be stuffed with chocolate cream, pistachio cream, vanilla cream or fruit jam.

Amazing!

Rum Babas

There are differing stories about the origin of rum baba.

One legend goes that a Polish King took some stale bread and soaked it in rum and sugar. This tasted so good that the dessert became famous all over Europe.

If you ask the French, they will say they invented this delicious dessert, but the Italians say it originated from Naples (Italy) in the 18th century.

Baba is a small yeast cake soaked in a rum syrup. It has a moist and sponge-like texture and is sometimes filled with whipped cream or pastry cream as you see here.

These babas are considered to be a delightful and indulgent dessert.

Crostatas

Crostata is an Italian tart or pie made with a shortcrust pastry base filled with various sweet fillings.

The fillings can range from fruit preserves (such as apricot, cherry, or fig) to pastry cream, Nutella, or ricotta cheese with chocolate chips.

Say what you want about watching your weight and not succumbing to eating pastries, but with all the variety that was offered in Italy, we found ourselves nibbling on one or another almost daily.

Cream puffs

These cream puffs are light and airy pastries filled with various creamy fillings.

One popular variation is filling them with chocolate pastry cream, or they can sometimes be dipped in chocolate ganache.

The ones above have fresh whipped cream piped into them.

Panna Cotta

Panna Cotta is an egg, cream, sugar and gelatin style of dessert also popular in Italy.

The gelatin firms up the creamy mixture, and is almost a fail-proof dessert to make. This gelatin can be flavored, made into individual servings and beautifully decorated such as the ones you see above.

Mandarin Orange Panna Cotta

This looks simply delicious.

The Panna Cotta is covered in an orange glaze and topped with orange cream and a sliver of white chocolate.

An orange marmalade separates the two layers.

Another gelatin dessert

This looks to me like another presentation of Panna Cotta with a citrus glaze and chocolate cookies decorating the top.

Strawberry and raspberry desserts

Since Panna Cotta can be flavored in a variety of ways, the bright red-glazed dessert above has the juice of strawberries and raspberries to color it.

It makes an eye captivating display.

White and milk chocolate bites

These triple delights are covered in either white or milk chocolate with hazelnut filling.

Classic cappuccino and dessert

Here you see a classic cappuccino served with an almond cookie.

At the bottom right is a creamy-cakey dessert with chocolate drizzle.

Seriously, we normally don't eat so many pastries, but these desserts are an integral part of Italian life.

Pastry shops were everywhere, and outdoor cafes simply beckoned us to sit down and enjoy these treats.

So... we did!

Retire Early Lifestyle appeals to a different kind of person – the person who prizes their independence, values their time, and who doesn’t want to mindlessly follow the crowd.

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