Torta della Nonna, or “Grandmother's Cake”, is the quintessential Italian dessert cake that symbolizes the love and warmth associated with traditional family baking. Evidently, the dessert gets its name from Italian grandmothers who pass down their baking secrets and techniques from one generation to another. A hybrid of a cake and a pie, it consists of a citrus-infused tender shortcrust filled with luscious Italian pastry cream, making for one of the most wholesome Italian desserts.
This Italian classic traces back to 19th-century Sicily, specifically to the town of Palermo. It was meant to be one of the chief elements in a party desserts spread of the time. It became especially popular in the middle of the 20th century throughout Italy even as Italian food started gaining ground in the global arena. Italian immigrants brought dessert traditions to new lands and adjusted recipes for local tastes and ingredients.
Italian restaurants and bakeries helped popularize the delight during the 1960s and 1970s, so much, so that it became one of the mainstays of Italian dessert menus around the world. Even today, this ancient dessert speaks to Italy's rich culinary past and the lasting legacy of its nonnas.
Here is a recipe for a classic Torta della Nonna that you can make with ingredients lying around in your own kitchen.
Ingredients:
- 500 gm flour
- 270 gm sugar
- 130 gm butter (cubed)
- 2 eggs
- 230 ml milk (lukewarm)
- 3 tbsp cornflour
- 3 tsp vanilla extract
- 85 gm candied citron
- 85 gm candied orange
- 100 gm pine nuts
Method:
- In a large bowl, whisk together flour and confectioners' sugar.
- To the dry mixture, add the cubed butter, and using a pastry blender or your fingertips, work into the flour mixture until the mixture has a crumbly but coarse texture.
- Lightly beat eggs and vanilla extract in a bowl.
- Then, gradually pour the egg mixture into the flour crumbs, until the dough comes together.
- You have to then refrigerate the dough for at least 30 minutes, wrapping it in plastic wrap.
- Next, preheat the oven to 180°C.
- Roll out the dough on a lightly floured surface to approximately 4.5 mm thickness.
- Put the dough into a tart pan with a removable bottom.
- To make the Italian pastry cream, whisk egg yolks and confectioner’s sugar just until combined. Now, add cornflour and mix it into the eggs until combined. Follow this by pouring the warm milk into the mix. Do not use steaming milk for this step to avoid the egg from scrambling.
- Now, transfer this anglaise to a heavy-bottomed pan on low heat, and keep stirring the mix till it becomes thicker and starts sticking to the back of your wooden ladle.
- You can optionally add candied citron and chopped candied orange peel.
- By now, your crust and spread would have gotten ready, individually. To assemble them, you have to spread the Italian pastry cream filling over your pastry crust.
- Finally it's time to bake this scrumptious dish in your preheated oven for 45-50 minutes.
- To make the pine nut topping, combine pine nuts and granulated sugar in a small bowl.
- Once your dessert is baked, sprinkle the topping evenly over the top.
- Once garnished, remove the cake from the oven and let it cool completely on a wire rack.
- You need to be patient for a little while longer while your dessert gets chilled in the refrigerator for at least three hours to allow the filling to set.
- Cut in slices and serve with a dusting of icing sugar.
Pro tip:
- The key to making this dish is gently folding all ingredients together; avoid overworking the dough or the filling because overworking will lead to a grainy texture in the final product.
- You can store this Italian pastry cream in the refrigerator for up to four to five days. However, keep it covered in a sealed container or plastic cling film so that skin does not form on the top. If it does, use a spatula or a sharp knife to scrape it off. Do not try and mix the skin into the cream to avoid getting lumps.
- Pastry cream can curdle and split when kept in the freezer, so do not deep freeze the cream.