The FERRARESE BRAZADELA or Romagna ring cake, depending on the area where it is made, is a homemade cake — genuine, quick to prepare, compact yet soft and very tasty.
It has very ancient origins; some sources date it back as far as the 1200s, when it was made on feast days with farm produce or given as a gift to children about to be confirmed. In the past, in taverns it was customary for the innkeeper to walk among the tables to top up his customers’ glasses with his wine or to exchange a few words. Tradition holds that, along with the wine, the innkeeper carried the Ferrarese brazadela on his arm — hence the name brazadela.
It is a humble cake, typically eaten at breakfast dipped in milk, or between meals soaked in wine, usually Albana. It is also used on festive days in place of sponge cake when making English trifle.
Make it and you’ll see that in no time you’ll have a cake that will conquer everyone’s taste buds.
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- Difficulty: Very easy
- Cost: Budget-friendly
- Preparation time: 10 Minutes
- Portions: 10 servings
- Cooking methods: Oven
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: All seasons
- Energy 157.62 (Kcal)
- Carbohydrates 25.79 (g) of which sugars 11.11 (g)
- Proteins 3.09 (g)
- Fat 5.03 (g) of which saturated 3.07 (g)of which unsaturated 1.83 (g)
- Fibers 0.47 (g)
- Sodium 34.38 (mg)
Indicative values for a portion of 40 g processed in an automated way starting from the nutritional information available on the CREA* and FoodData Central** databases. It is not food and / or nutritional advice.
* CREATES Food and Nutrition Research Center: https://www.crea.gov.it/alimenti-e-nutrizione https://www.alimentinutrizione.it ** U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2019. https://fdc.nal.usda.gov
Ingredients
- 2 2/3 cups 00-type all-purpose flour
- 5 oz granulated sugar
- 2 tsp baking powder
- pinch salt
- lemon zest (unsprayed)
- 2 eggs (medium, room temperature)
- 6 tbsp butter (melted and warm)
- 1 tbsp anise liqueur (or milk)
- as needed milk
- pearl sugar
WHAT YOU’LL NEED FOR THE FERRARESE BRAZADELA
- 1 Bowl
- 1 Sieve
- 1 Small bowl
- Baking paper
- 1 Pastry brush
PREPARATION: FERRARESE BRAZADELA
To prepare the FERRARESE BRAZADELA, first melt the butter in the microwave or in a double boiler and let it cool until warm.
In a bowl place the sifted flour with the baking powder, the sugar, the zest of an unsprayed lemon and a pinch of salt. Mix the dry ingredients, make a well in the center and add the eggs, the anise liqueur (or milk if children will also eat the cake) and the melted butter.
Then mix the ingredients together with a fork.
Continue working the dough with your hands until you obtain a homogeneous, soft dough. Shape it into a loaf about 4 x 8 in (approximately) and place it on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
Press lightly on the surface and brush the cake with a little milk, then sprinkle it with pearl sugar.
Bake the brazadela in a preheated static/conventional oven at 338°F for 30 minutes. Then bake for an additional 5 minutes with the oven in convection mode to make it golden.
Remove it from the baking sheet, let it cool completely and serve sliced.
STORAGE
Being a dry pantry cake, the BRAZADELA keeps well for up to 1 week if stored in an airtight container or a tin.
