New Place to Discover Flavours of Malta Opens in Birkirkara
Michela Cammarota Cefai opens a new Birkirkara space celebrating Malta’s culinary heritage, where locals and visitors can discover traditional recipes, from pastizzi to beloved sweets, through hands-on experiences.
Picture this: a golden, impossibly flaky pastry unlike anything you’ve ever experienced. You smell it before you see it. The warm aroma drifts through the streets, buttery and savoury, hinting at something extraordinary. It isn’t a croissant. It isn’t bread. It isn’t overly sweet, and there is nothing dry about it. It’s more complex. It’s a richly nuanced delicacy that you might not have been properly introduced to you yet.
But that’s all about to change.
So, what exactly is this little parcel of perfection? If you’re visiting Malta for the first time, chances are you’ve never encountered anything quite like it. Distinctive in shape and unapologetically indulgent, it promises layers of crisp, feather-light pastry wrapped around a luscious filling. It’s the kind of treat that feels both comforting and a little bit mischievous. It’s as though someone captured the very best of savoury baking that lands itself perfectly in the palm of your hand.
The first bite tells you everything. The pastry shatters into delicate flakes with an irresistible crunch, while the warm filling, whether silky ricotta or richly spiced curried peas, dances effortlessly on your tongue. Every mouthful is a celebration of texture and flavour, making it abundantly clear why Malta’s iconic pastizzi has earned such a devoted following.
Arriving in the Maltese Islands, you will find plenty of small local shops selling the country’s beloved pastry, the pastizzi. A traditional handmade savoury pastry, the pastizzi is most commonly filled with either creamy ricotta or curried peas. Early each morning, you may spot large vans delivering trays of freshly baked pastizzi to various shops across towns and villages.
Visitors quickly fall in love with these irresistible pastries and inevitably wonder how they are made. Ask at any of the local shops and you will most likely discover that the recipe is a closely guarded family secret. Fortunately, there is one person, one shop, and one creative woman who is more than happy to share the art of making authentic pastizzi with both visitors and locals alike. And, her recipes are amazing.
Her name is Michela Cammarota Cefai, founder of A Pastizzi Experience.
For many years, guests booked classes at Michela’s home, where she welcomed them into her kitchen to learn the craft behind these iconic pastries. However, in April this year, she opened the doors to her brand-new premises at 39, Triq il-Kbira, Birkirkara. Michela’s passion for preserving such an important part of Malta’s culinary heritage continues to drive everything she does. Her mission is to share the history, culture, and flavours of Malta through its traditional food.
“The space is dedicated to Maltese food and keeping traditions alive,” she says with a smile when asked what the new venue represents.
Learning Michela’s recipe for these incredible pastizzi is a game changer. Imagine mastering the technique under the guidance of one of Malta’s finest, then recreating these iconic pastries in your own kitchen long after your holiday has ended. Just one warning: they are highly addictive! From the crisp crackle of the delicate, flaky pastry with every bite to the warm, creamy ricotta that melts in your mouth or the intensely flavourful curried pea filling that transforms a humble ingredient into something truly sublime, it’s easy to understand why pastizzi have become a lifelong obsession for so many.
But wait! There’s more! At A Pastizzi Experience, classes have also expanded beyond pastizzi. Visitors can now learn to make other cherished local specialities, including imqaret and the nostalgic Maltese dessert ġelat tan-nanna. And, as if sharing her own treasured recipes were not generous enough, Michela is also inviting anyone with a traditional Maltese family recipe they would like to preserve to collaborate with her, helping ensure these culinary traditions continue to be passed on to future generations.
Classes at A Pastizzi Experience can be booked by individuals, couples looking for a unique date, or larger groups. Visit the website to browse the available experiences and book your own taste of Maltese tradition.
Book ahead as she fills up quickly!
