Soft Chestnut Cake with Ricotta and Chocolate Chips
This is the first time I’ve made chestnut cake, an ancient, typically autumnal dessert, originating from Tuscany and Emilia Romagna. I found it extremely soft and moist, with the distinctive taste of chestnuts that melts in your mouth.
A healthy and light dessert, without eggs, butter, oil, and gluten.
For the purists, I should mention that chestnut cake is usually a simple dessert; my version, however, is a different variation, – enriched compared to the original recipe -, with ricotta and chocolate chips, and it also uses milk instead of water. I assure you it’s totally worth it. During the cold months, my family keeps asking me to make it again, because it’s a warming and comforting food that warms the heart and the palate. Ideal as a snack or healthy breakfast during the winter or as a dessert for a simple dinner.
It’s a simple, easy, and quick dessert, requiring only 4 ingredients and the dough is ready in 10 minutes.
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- Difficulty: Very Easy
- Cost: Economical
- Preparation time: 10 Minutes
- Portions: 4 servings
- Cooking methods: Oven
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: Autumn, Winter, All Saints
Ingredients for Soft Chestnut Cake with Ricotta
- 7 oz Chestnut flour (I use Molino Rossetto)
- 7 oz Cow's milk ricotta
- 1/4 cup Powdered sugar
- 1 1/8 cups Whole milk
- 1/4 cup Chocolate chips (I use Callebaut chocolate chips)
Tools
- Scale digital, with removable bowl and alarm timer
- Bowls set of Guzzini bowls of various sizes
- Mixer electric Philips, with 450W power
- Springform Pan with a diameter of 8 inches
Preparation of Soft Chestnut Cake with Ricotta
Pour the chestnut flour into a bowl, add the milk little by little, then add the ricotta mixed separately with the powdered sugar. Work for 5 minutes; you should obtain a thick cream (it can be done by hand or with a mixer).
Pour the mixture into an 8-inch diameter springform pan lined with parchment paper, sprinkle with chocolate chips.
Bake at 356°F for about 30 minutes.
Once unmolded, sprinkle the chestnut cake with powdered sugar.
Notes and Tips
If you love the taste of chestnuts, also try my “Chestnut Gnocchi with Fontina, Broccoli, and Sausage“.
Tip: for a vitamin-rich and energetic morning, pair a slice of chestnut cake with a cup of sweetened soy milk with a teaspoon of honey, or a jar of whole plain yogurt.
Shopping Recommendations !!!
To weigh the ingredients in my preparations, I use this practical Digital Kitchen Scale, with a large removable bowl, tare function, and built-in timer.
Very practical and cute are these colorful Guzzini bowl set, always useful in the kitchen.
I worked the cake batter with the powerful Philips mixer with 450W power and 5 speeds + turbo.
You can purchase all the items I recommend above on Amazon at a great price, just click directly on the respective links.
You can purchase all the items I recommend above on Amazon at a great price, just click directly on the respective links.
Origins and History of Chestnut Cake
In the past, chestnut cake was considered the main dish of poor families and was consumed as a single course in autumn and throughout the winter.
Today, the recipe for this dessert is often modified and reworked to make it more delicious compared to the traditional recipe (just like this soft chestnut cake with ricotta and chocolate chips of mine) which originally included only chestnuts, pine nuts, water, salt, and rosemary (see here).
Northern central Italy generally celebrates All Saints with chestnut cake on the table.
