Torte Della Nona

 

 

Just like my grandma used to
make if she were Italian

Ciao amici di bella! Come Stai?  Have you ever gone on a vacation and ate something that was so wonderful that years later you could still taste it on your tongue while the smell of it just seemed to waft through the air out of nowhere?  Go ahead, take a moment and reminisce…   

A few years ago, I had a wonderful opportunity and spent two glorious weeks in Florence and Venice, Italy.  Grazie, E.  The trip was absolutely amazing, I have never eaten better pasta, drank better wine, or tasted richer thicker hot chocolate.  But, most memorable was one of the best things I ever ate–a lovely lemon pastry from a place called Rivoire, located in the Piazza Della Signoria, in Florence.  Rivoire is over one hundred thirty-five years old and is the premiere chocolate shoppe in Florence, so not surprisingly their wonderful chocolate was drizzled atop my pastry with a little confectioner’s sugar for good measure.  The lemon and the chocolate just melted in my mouth; I have to say this pastry was truly divalicious.   I still remember thinking the crust was interesting in a yummy way, but at the time I didn’t know why.  Funny thing is I never asked the name of the dessert, so this mystery dessert just remained on my mind and in my heart long after the vacation was over…   

Not too long ago, I met a lady who had lived in Italy for many years, so I began to describe this delightful pastry.  Right away she said it must have been “Torte Della Nona.”  Boy was I happy to have a name and eager to find a recipe.  The kicker for me is the fact that I found out  Torte Della Nona means Grandmother’s Cake in italian.  So, for those of you who know me or read the ”About” page you know my blog is dedicated to my grandmother and her influence on my baking.  A coincidence, I doubt it but doesn’t  it make sense that the best dessert I ever ate would be a tribute to grandmothers?    

Finding a recipe was a labor of love because I had to look at many recipes–many in Italian– and so many of the recipes I came across left me wondering if they would make something as good as the pastry I remembered (of course I didn’t find Rivoire’s recipe).  Moreover, would making this recipe in America produce similar or very different results because when you travel outside the US, you find there’s something a little different about our ingredients as opposed to other parts of the world?  And, I realized if I found an authentic recipe, it would require a converting measurements because Europeans use the metric system for measuring ingredients (converting measurements can be a little tricky)…   

By the by, I recently got a chance to make my long-awaited dessert.  I am pleased to say, my Torte Della Nona was pretty good.  I got great compliments, so I’ll make it again after some fine tuning.  What I learned from researching recipes is the crust is called pasta frolla, which is similar to a shortbread crust.  And, that interesting piece of the crust I mentioned earlier is a layer of sponge cake.  The sponge cake is topped with a custard, pine nuts (in my case almonds) and then powdered sugar.  The pastry is baked and topped with more powdered sugar.  Then may be served plain, but I recommend a drizzling of chocolate or chocolate curls (see previous post).    

I look forward to getting back to Rivoire to compare notes, but if it wasn’t Torte Della Nona I had there no matter, because I now have a great new dessert to share.  I suggest if you’re ever in Florence you stop in for a pastry and some hot chocolate, you won’t be disappointed.  But, if you want to try the Torte Della Nona now, I recommend you look at this VIDEO.  I need to warn you, it’s in Italian but there is subtext in case you need translation.  Play with it and make it your own, the Torte Della Nona will go great with your next Italian or “just because” dinner.    

Mangiare e godere.   

Until next time,   

Divalicious Italian Lemon Pastry

 

Be Sweet and Divalicious   

Desserts Diva

Chocolate, Chocolate, Chocolate

Chocolate, Chocolate, Chocolate

Have you ever heard the saying: “location, location, location?”  Of course you have.  It’s often used to explain what you look for when you’re buying, renting or leasing real estate.  But when you’re talking about desserts it should be: “chocolate, chocolate, chocolate.”  Short of having allergies, some unfortunate childhood experience, or a very very strict diet who doesn’t love chocolate?  There’s something wonderful, like a little flavor explosion, that happens when you first bite into something chocolate.  And, the more chocolate, the bigger the explosion.  Tell the truth, right now you’re thinking about the last time you had chocolate and how great it was, aren’t you?

Recently, I was asked to re-create a chocolate cake I had made for friends during the holidays.  It was a chocolate chip cake with chocolate sour cream frosting.  It’s really chocolatey and just divalicious;  but it needed a little something to make it extra special.  So, I decided to make chocolate curls…

In the past, making chocolate curls with a vegetable peeler* was “easy breezy,” but not this time.  As usual, I used a good bar of chocolate that I slightly warmed in the microwave, so I’d get long beautiful curls.  As you can see, I didn’t get curls I got shavings (not really what I wanted).  

Chocolate Shavings

I gave up the vegetable peeler and quickly resorted to a back-up plan– melted then scraped chocolate.  I got a slightly different embellishment than I planned but with the clock ticking, I didn’t have time for a cake disaster.  It worked like a charm and the final result was as dramatic and special as I had hoped. 

Here’s how I did it:

Ingredients/Equipment: Chocolate, Marble Slab, Chef’s Knife

Melt a cup of chocolate (chips or a bar chopped into chunks) on medium for 1 minute.  Stir and repeat for thirty seconds at a time until the chocolate is fully melted and smooth.  Pour the chocolate onto a marble slab and spread thick or thin depending on the size of the curls you want to make.  If you don’t have a marble slab, I highly recommend you get one, it’s great for this project as well as rolling out dough for pastries.  Absent a marble slab, pour the melted chocolate on an inverted cookie sheet.  Let the chocolate harden. Chill it in the refrigerator or freezer if you’re in hurry.

Hardened Chocolate

When the chocolate is hardened, get your Chef’s knife.  Starting at one end of the chocolate, holding your knife at a 45 degree angle push the knife across the chocolate to the other end.  As you do this, the chocolate will begin to curl. 

The size of your curls depends on how wide you spread the chocolate and how far you push the knife.  Repeat this process as many times as you need in order to get as many curls as you need. 

Big Chocolate Curls

 

 

 Note: the curls will be delicate and quickly melt to the touch, so be careful placing them on your cake/dessert.

 

 
 

 

Give this technique a try, it’s sure to make your desserts divalicious.

Be Sweet & Divalicious…

Chocolate Cake Anyone?

*A Good old-fashioned vegetable peeler gave me shavings.  However, the newer “Y-shaped” peelers potentially provide better results.  The chocolate bar needs to be somewhat heated (microwave on medium about 10 seconds, check and repeat as necessary) no matter what vegetable peeler you try in order to get the desired results.

Candied Carrot Curls

Orange-kissed Carrot Cake

 

Not too long ago, I celebrated my mother’s birthday.  And, as always, I wanted to make her something special for dessert.  My mom is probably my biggest fan, so when I asked her what she wanted for a birthday treat she said, “anything you make will be just fine with me.”    

At first, I thought a chocolate, lemon, pound,  or cheesecake might work.  Then a better idea came to mind–Orange-kissed Carrot Cake.  For health conscious folks, it can’t be too bad–the carrots make it healthy, right?   My Orange-kissed Carrot Cake is a really dense cake packed with walnuts and raisins and iced with an Orange Cream Cheese Frosting (it’s yummy and divalicious).  To make the cake extra special, I decided to top the cake with candied carrot curls.  They take a little time, but they’re easy to make.   And, they make the cake look fabulous.  

Ingredients:

• 1 lg. carrot  (or two medium) 
• 1 cup sugar
• scant cup water
• 2 T orange liqueur

Equipment: Vegetable Peeler, Parchment Paper/Silpat, 1/2 in. wooden dowel*    

Directions:

Preheat oven to 225 degrees Farenheit and place rack in the center position.    

Peel layers from carrot lengthwise on only one side until the slices become wide stips–the wider the better.  Peel as many wide strips as possible.    

Measure the orange liqueur first then add enough water to make one cup.  Bring the water/liquer mixture and sugar to a boil in a small pan, stirring until the sugar dissolves.  Add the carrot strips and simmer uncovered for 15 minutes.     

candied carrots, simmering

 

Using tongs or a slotted spoon remove the carrot strips and lay flat on a plate for 15 minutes (Note: strain and reserve the syrup for brushing on the layers of your carrot cake before frosting because this adds flavor and moisture).    

Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper, then arrange the carrot strips flat in a single layer.  Bake for about 30 minutes until dry but still flexible.  Take the carrots out of the oven but leave it on.   For each carrot strip, wrap it around the dowel making a loose spiral, slide the curl off and back onto the baking sheet, with the seam side down.    

spiraled candied carrots

 

Return the curls to the oven and bake 35-40 minutes until crisp.  Check the curls after 5 minutes to make sure they’ve held their shape.   If not, just curl them again and throw them back in the oven.  

      

   

*If you can’t find a dowel at the hardware store, you could try making spirals free-hand, it’s a little tricky, but doable.    

 As you can see, the candied carrot curls made mom’s cake extra special.  And, they taste great!  Try them and make your next carrot cake, divalicious.    

 

Happy Birthday Mom!

 

Keep this site on your radar and tell a friend as new posts will be added regularly .

  

Be sweet and Divalicious.

  

Desserts Diva

  

 

  
  
     

  

 

 

 

 

 

  

  

 

 

  

 

Apricot Crostata a la Taleggio

About a year ago, I had the good fortune to taste one of the most fascinating desserts.  It was a mixed berry tart with goat cheese.  This was an amazing treat.  I loved this dessert and I’m not really fond of goat cheese.  There was something special about the combination of sweet & savory.  So, I’ve been searching all this time for the recipe or one comparable–not having had any luck but never forgetting the impression the taste left upon me…   

Recently, I watched Giada De Laurentiis make Crostata with Dried Apricots and Taleggio.  I thought: “oh boy, I’m finally going to get my sweet and savory dessert.”  I decided to make it right away and rushed out to get the ingredients.  The first thing I learned was finding Taleggio cheese in my area wasn’t easy.  After Trader Joe’s didn’t work (TJ’s has every specialty food, don’t they?), I finally found the cheese at Bristol Farms…   

First, I grabbed the food processor, the marble rolling-pin and marble slab.  Next, I assembled all the ingredients.  Then, I proceeded to make what I believed would be a  masterpiece.  Making the dough was easy and came together in a snap, but I did add my own variations.  For example, I used frozen butter to make the dough.  Almost all crostata, pie or tart dough recipes call for cold butter.  I use frozen butter to ensure it’s still cold when it goes into the food processor.  The next change I made was swapping vodka for some of the water called for in the recipe.  Yes, I said VODKA.  Some time ago I was listening to a Master Baker talk about baking pies and they said the way to get the flakiest crust you ever tasted was to use equal parts ice water and vodka.  Why? The reason being the vodka wouldn’t create temperature issues that would interfere with the butter’s ability to form a flaky crust.  And, the vodka cooks out so it doesn’t affect the taste making it undetectable.  Keep this tidbit of information because it really works.   

I followed the rest of the instructions, but added raw sugar (demura) to the crust before baking and after a while produced a beautiful crostata.   

Sweet & Savory Crostata

Only one problem, it really wasn’t what I expected.  It was more savory than sweet, not that there’s anything wrong with that.  In fact, some folks who tried it thought it was great just the way it came out of the oven.  I, on the other hand, had to put some whip cream on top (I planned on putting whipped cream on top all along, but I had to put a lot).

In the future, I would make this crostata again but with a few more variations, so it’s more sweet than savory.  I’ve included a recipe below and added the changes I intend to make in the future.  If you’re looking for a more savory crostata, by all means check out Giada’s original recipe referenced above.

Ingredients

Crust:

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 3 tablespoons frozen, unsalted butter, cut into small pieces or shredded with a grater
• 1/2 cup cold mascarpone cheese
• 1 1/2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 3-4 tablespoons ice water/vodka (equal parts water to vodka) 

Filling:

• 2 cups (12 ounces) dried apricots
• apricot preserves (about 1/4 cup)
• 1/3 cup chopped walnuts
• 2 teaspoons lemon zest
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 3/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
• 1/3 cup honey, plus extra to drizzle when it comes out of the oven 
• 3 ounces Taleggio* cheese, rind removed, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
• 1 egg, beaten
• Raw sugar (Demura)

*Taleggio is a semi-soft italian cheese that may be difficult to find.  You could use a Port Salut (TJ’s has this) or any other semi-soft cheese you can find.  Alternatively, you could use a brie or goat cheese.     

Directions

For the crust: Add the flour, salt, and sugar to a food processor and pulse to combine. Add the butter and pulse until the butter is finely chopped and the mixture resembles coarse meal. Add the mascarpone cheese and lemon juice and pulse a few times. Add the ice water/vodka mixture and run the machine just until the mixture is moist and crumbly, but does not form a ball. Do not overmix. Turn the dough out onto a sheet of plastic wrap. Press into a disk, cover, and refrigerate for 30 minutes.   

For the filling: Put an oven rack in the lower third of the oven. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. In a medium bowl, combine the apricots, walnuts, lemon zest, cinnamon, and sea salt. Add the honey and stir until all the ingredients are coated. Stir in 2/3 of the cheese.   

Cut a piece of parchment paper to fit inside a 12 by 17-inch baking sheet and put it on a work surface. Put the chilled dough on the parchment paper. Roll the dough into an 11-inch circle, about 1/4-inch thick. Lift the parchment paper and transfer it to a baking sheet. Spread a generous amount of apricot preserves over the dough. Put the apricot filling in the center of the dough, spreading evenly, leaving a 2-inch border. Fold the dough border over the filling to form an 8-inch round. Pleat the edge of the pastry and pinch to seal any cracks in the dough. Arrange the remaining cheese on top of the filling.   

Using a pastry brush, brush the crust with the beaten egg. Sprinkle the raw sugar over the crust.  Bake until the crust starts to turn golden, about 15 to 18 minutes. Cover the crostata loosely with a piece of foil and cook until the crust is golden and the cheese has melted, another 12 to 15 minutes. Remove the crostata from the oven to a cutting board and uncover. Cool for 10 minutes, drizzle honey over the top, then cut into slices. Serve warm by itself, with ice cream or with whipped cream.    

Here’s to indulging your sweet tooth.  Bon appetit.

Red Velvet Cupcakes (It’s all about presentation)

Looks like it we're alone

 

Have you ever eaten anything that tasted so good, it made your eyes roll back in your head while you licked your fingers and smacked your lips?  Well if not, then you haven’t been eating the right desserts— Red Velvet Cupcakes, done right.  Recently, friends who know I love to bake who have tried some of my goodies in the past asked me to come up with a little dessert for a reception* they were having that would host about 40 people.  I offered them creme brulee or lemon cheesecake tarts which they adored, but they declined because they felt might be too labor intensive.  So, they suggested and requested I make Red Velvet Cupcakes.  And, with that we were off to the races…   

For a moment, let me digress.  I created a blog last summer on WordPress about Cookin’ With Love.  It started off pretty well, but I got busy and didn’t really get a chance to post regularly.  Yesterday, I decided I needed to share my Red Velvet Cupcake story, so I decided to post to my old blog.  Unfortunately, I was unable to remember the password, so I requested it be reset and the new password be sent to my e-mail address.  It turns out, I couldn’t access that account either; I reached out to google support and I didn’t get the results I needed.  After several unsuccessful attempts to access my old blog, I gave up and started this one.  The good news is I hadn’t posted much, so not much is lost and I REALLY like the new blog name, a name I was dubbed after making Red Velvet Cupcakes…   

So, back to the Red Velvet cupcakes.  I tinkered with two recipes before I got it right on the third charming try.  The first recipe was too chocolatey and the second was too dry.  What I learned from my trials and errors was don’t dump the food coloring in the batter, make a paste of it with the unsweetened cocoa powder.  If you dump, you clump.  It’s not a Red Velvet Cake/Cupcake if it doesn’t have buttermilk, vinegar and baking soda.  And, if you’re not careful with the amount of liquid you use, you’ll have dry cupcakes.  There’s so many recipes out there, try a couple and see what suits your tastes.   

Straight from the bakery, not

 

Now about presentation, which really is  key when turning ordinary treats into great desserts.  In the spirit of Valentine’s Day and with my friends’ blessings, I chose to embellish the cupcakes to the hilt.  I placed them in Wilton heart designed cupcake wrappers that I was able to purchase at a local craft store. By the way, I am also really fond of Fancy Flours at fancyflours.com; they have a great selection of cupcake wrappers and more.  I used a large star tip to swirl cream cheese frosting on top (some were tinted pink while others remained cream).  Note: Frequently, Red Velvet Cupcakes are made with boiled icing, but I really think my icing worked well.  I adorned the tops of each cupcake with a heart-shaped chocolate with a lovely lace-like pattern.  I finished them off with a little glitter and they sparkled like perfect little gems.    At the reception, I scattered some purple confetti hearts and arranged the cupcakes on platters of different sizes and heights to create interest.   

Happy Valentine's Day

 

The presentation was fabulous and the cupcakes were devoured.  Right away, attendees asked me if they could call me “Cupcake” and other affectionate names, but the one that seems to fit me most is Desserts Diva  So, from now on I’ll proudly don the moniker Desserts Diva.   

Thanks R&R for choosing me to provide the desserts for your soiree.   

*The reception was held for Gary Malkin an Emmy awarding-winning composer who is using his music “to promote  peace, environmental sustainability, and integration of mind, heart, and spirit… check out Gary at www.wisdomoftheworld.com.