Food-wise, Northeastern Italy’s Veneto region might conjure up images of mouth-watering delicacies like sarde in saor (sweet and sour sardines), bigoli in salsa (a thick spaghetti-like pasta with a sauce of onions and sardines), or baccalà mantecato, (creamed, dried cod spread on toast).

However, less-discussed but just as drool-worthy are the sweet cakes of Veneto, rooted in the buttery baking tradition of the North. Everywhere from Treviso to Verona, Venice to Padova, and even small towns in-between offer up a special cake or two that is worthy of discovering to better savor and understand the region.