The Russian cake is a typical dessert of the city of Verona and has a really unusual name.
You can find it in all the pastry shops in Verona, for the people of Verona it is a true comfort food and many families are used to preparing it for Sunday lunch.
It is a crunchy puff pastry shell that encloses a soft filling based on almonds and amaretti.
It is a fairly recent cake, it was created around the mid-last century by a Verona pastry chef who, it seems, wanted to dedicate it to a beautiful Russian girl he had deeply fallen in love with during a trip. The other version is that it is called this way because its shape resembles the famous Russian hat, the ushanka.
However, it doesn’t matter much how it was born, this cake is really delicious and very simple to prepare.
- Difficulty: Very easy
- Cost: Inexpensive
- Preparation time: 20 Minutes
- Portions: 8 people
- Cooking methods: Oven
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: All seasons
- Energy 527.81 (Kcal)
- Carbohydrates 50.62 (g) of which sugars 17.45 (g)
- Proteins 9.43 (g)
- Fat 31.43 (g) of which saturated 9.41 (g)of which unsaturated 14.44 (g)
- Fibers 2.51 (g)
- Sodium 162.13 (mg)
Indicative values for a portion of 120 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 for the Russian Cake
- 1 roll puff pastry
- 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 cup almond flour
- 3 1/2 oz amaretti (finely crumbled)
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 7 tbsps butter
- 2 tablespoons liqueur (rum or amaretto)
- 4 tsp baking powder
- 3 eggs
Tools
- Stand Mixer
- Cake Pan
Preparation of the Russian Cake
Place the eggs and sugar in the bowl of the stand mixer and whisk them for about 10 minutes. They should become fluffy and glossy.
Meanwhile, melt the butter in a double boiler and let it cool.
As soon as the egg and sugar mixture is ready, add the liqueur and mix for another minute with the stand mixer’s whisk. Add the cooled melted butter.
Sift the flour with the baking powder, add the almond flour and finely crumbled amaretti and mix carefully.
With the aid of a spatula, gently fold the dry ingredients into the egg and sugar mixture to avoid deflating it.
Line a 9-inch springform cake pan with parchment paper, you can use the one in which the puff pastry is rolled.
Line the pan with the puff pastry, trying to keep the edges high enough to hold all the filling.
Prick the bottom with a fork and pour in the filling, leveling it well with the spatula.
Fold the edges towards the center of the cake, making some decorative pleats.
Bake the Russian cake in a preheated oven at 340°F in static mode for about 45 minutes. Perform the toothpick test to ensure the cake is cooked.
If the cake darkens too much, cover it with a sheet of aluminum foil.
Remove from the oven and let it cool completely before serving, dusting with a little powdered sugar.
The Russian cake keeps well for several days covered under a cake dome.
