Towering Pandoro and Panettone cakes may reign supreme in Italy at Christmas, but Easter is all about the sweet known as Colomba di Pasqua. The cake takes its name from its shape – baked in the form of a dove, or colomba in Italian. The symbol of peace, as well as a sign of spring, the dove shape is also the cake’s main association with the Easter holiday.

Traditionally, colomba dough is made with butter, eggs, yeast, and sugar, and is allowed to rise for more than 24 hours, until it has doubled in size. The cake is sometimes studded with candied fruits, then baked in a paper mold in the curving shape of a dove. This beloved Easter sweet takes on an airy, bread-like quality as it bakes, and is then topped with sweet almonds and pearl sugar.