Dessert Italian

Pizza dolce (sweet layered sponge cake) recipe

Name: Pizza dolce (sweet layered sponge cake) recipe
Yield: 10
Cuisine: /italian
Ingredients: 6 eggs, separated; 150g pure icing sugar, sifted; 2.00 tsp vanilla bean paste; 150g plain flour; 40.00 ml potato starch (from health food shops); 1 tsp baking powder; 1/4 tsp cream of tartar; 20.00 ml instant coffee; 20.00 ml cocoa powder, sifted; Campari (optional), to brush; 300ml thickened cream, whipped; Glace cherries and toasted almond flakes, to decorate; G 850ml milk; Finely grated zest of 1 lemon; 6 egg yolks; 110g caster sugar; 60g cornflour; 1 1/2 sheets titanium-strength gelatine

Rate now

Jump to recipe

by Silvia Colloca

Cook and author

Aug 08, 2018

Gluten-free potato starch acts a stabiliser for the sponge without adding more gluten to it, which results in a light, fluffy cake.

6 eggs, separated
150g pure icing sugar, sifted
1 tsp vanilla bean paste
1 cup (150g) plain flour
2 tbs potato starch (from health food shops)
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp cream of tartar
1 tbs instant coffee
1 tbs cocoa powder, sifted
Campari (optional), to brush
300ml thickened cream, whipped
Glace cherries and toasted almond flakes, to decorate

Custard filling

G 850ml milk
1 tsp vanilla bean paste
Finely grated zest of 1 lemon
6 egg yolks
1/2 cup (110g) caster sugar
60g cornflour
1 1/2 sheets titanium-strength gelatine

Method

1.

Preheat oven to 180°C. Grease base and side of 22cm springform cake pan and line with baking paper.
2.

To make the cake, in a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, whisk egg yolks, icing sugar and vanilla for 8-10 minutes or until pale and fluffy. Sift in flour, potato starch and baking powder, and beat well with a wooden spoon to combine. Set aside. Whisk eggwhites and cream of tartar in a separate clean bowl until medium peaks form. Beat one-third eggwhite mixture into egg yolk mixture to loosen, then gently fold in remaining eggwhite mixture. Pour into prepared pan and smooth with a spatula. Bake for 30-35 minutes or until golden and a skewer inserted into centre of cake comes out clean. Remove from the oven and cool in pan for 20 minutes, then invert the cake onto a wire rack to cool completely.
3.

Meanwhile, to make the custard filling, heat the milk in a medium saucepan until just below simmering. Remove from heat, stir through vanilla and lemon zest, and stand to infuse for 10 minutes. In a bowl, whisk egg yolks and caster sugar until pale. Add cornflour and whisk until combined.
4.

Soak gelatine in cold water for 5 minutes to soften. Strain infused milk over egg yolk mixture, whisking constantly until smooth. Return milk mixture to saucepan, place over low heat and cook, whisking constantly, until simmering and very thick.
5.

Squeeze excess liquid from gelatine, add to pan and stir to dissolve. Spoon custard evenly into 2 separate bowls. Whisk coffee, 1 tbs hot water and cocoa in a small bowl. Add cocoa mixture to 1 batch of custard and whisk until combined. Cover surface of both custard batches with plastic wrap. Leave to cool at room temperature, then chill for at least 2 hours to firm up.
6.

To assemble, cut cake horizontally into 3 equal discs and brush tops with Campari. Place bottom cake layer on a cake stand and spread with coffee custard. Top with second cake layer and spread with vanilla custard. Top with final cake layer. Spread cream over top and scatter with glace cherries and almonds to serve.