Italian cuisine · Desserts & Sweets

Torta Sbrisolona

Crumbly almond cake from Mantua made with cornmeal and lots of butter, which is broken rather than sliced when served.

Ingredients · for 8 servings

• 150 g flour
• 150 g cornmeal
• 150 g sugar
• 150 g cold butter
• 150 g almonds
• 2 eggs
• 1 organic lemon (zest)
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 pinch salt
• 2 tbsp powdered sugar for dusting

Instructions

1. Roughly chop the almonds, finely grind a third of them, and preheat the oven to 175°C; butter a 26 cm springform pan.
2. Mix flour, cornmeal, sugar, ground almonds, salt and the grated lemon zest in a bowl.
3. Add the cold butter in small pieces and work it in quickly with your fingertips, until coarse, uneven crumbs form - this exact texture is what defines the cake.
4. Add the egg yolks and vanilla extract and work in only with a fork, so the dough stays crumbly and is never kneaded into a ball.
5. Scatter the crumbs loosely into the pan without pressing them down, sprinkle with the roughly chopped almonds and bake for 35-40 min, until everything is evenly golden brown.
6. Let cool completely in the pan, dust with powdered sugar and break by hand into irregular pieces instead of cutting.