Triumph of Gluttony | 1,000 Piece Jigsaw Puzzle

I had so much fun putting this puzzle together! At first I wondered what kind of name is “Triumph of Gluttony” for a jigsaw puzzle, but then I learned it’s the name of a Sicilian dessert, and that the table is laden with sweet delicacies from Sicily. Victoria Grant styled the food art, and this artist also has a cookbook full of recipes for these treats. I had the best time trying to identify the desserts and learn about their history. I haven’t seen a list of the desserts anywhere, so here are my best guesses! The glass jar in the top left is full of sugared almonds called “confetti,” and they are also strewn across the table. Moving clockwise, the molded dessert is “gelo de melone,” watermelon gelatin. Under the pottery is a marzipan orange and peach, called “frutta martorana” after the Benedictine nunnery where they originated. I believe there is a “fedde del cancelliere” on the plate also (“buttocks of the chancellor”—these nuns gave their desserts such ribald names!). The cake under that is a “cassata,” then there’s the big mirrored tray of cannoli in the bottom center, then an orange plate with marzipan fig and prickly pear. The pastries covered with white dots could be “anasini amaretti.” The little round cakes covered with marzipan may be called “cassatelle” or “cassatine,” except the green ones with the white top and cherry are called “minne di sant’Agata” (“breasts of Saint Agatha”—I’ll let you look up the story of her martyrdom!). The giant green masterpiece in the middle is our “trionfo di gola,” the eponymous Triumph of Gluttony. Get yourself a glass of granita and enjoy this puzzle!

This puzzle brand is my favorite simply because of the designs. They make new ones often. This one was fun enough to add to the collection.