The Vittorina Cake – My Way prepared for the namesake festival of the Lodi town of Graffignana, celebrated on October 9th. The recipe is somewhat improvised, as I don’t have the exact list of ingredients, I tried to make it as similar as possible. It’s a simple shortcrust pastry with a filling of white or black grapes (I used seedless ones). Great for breakfast or a snack.
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- Difficulty: Easy
- Cost: Cheap
- Rest time: 30 Minutes
- Preparation time: 1 Hour
- Cooking methods: Oven
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: Autumn
Ingredients
- 2.9 lbs white grapes (or black, seedless)
- 4 tablespoons granulated sugar
- 1 lemon
- 1/4 cup water
- 2.5 cups all-purpose flour
- 5.3 oz butter
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 pinch fine salt
- 1 egg
- as needed powdered sugar (for decoration)
Tools
- Bowl
- Colander
- Cutting board
- Knife
- Steel pan
- Spoon
- Citrus juicer
- Stand mixer
- Flat beater
- Work surface
- Plastic wrap
- Cake pan
- Knife
- Fork
- Sugar sifter
Steps
To prepare the Vittorina Cake – My Way…
Remove the grapes from the stem, place them in a bowl, wash them, and cut them in half.
Then take a steel pan, pour the sugar, water, juice of one lemon, and the halved grapes.
Cook them for about 1 hour over medium heat, stirring occasionally with a spoon, being careful not to let them stick (add a little more water if necessary). You should obtain a thick and dry mixture.
When the grapes are cooked and compact, turn off the heat and let them cool slightly.
While the grapes are cooking, prepare the shortcrust pastry. In the bowl of the stand mixer, place the butter cut into cubes, the sugar, and work the mixture with the flat beater until you get a sandy consistency.
Then add the egg and incorporate it into the sugar and butter mix.
Finally, add the flour, baking powder, and a pinch of fine salt. Work the dough one last time, slightly increasing the speed. The dough should come away from the sides of the bowl and become compact.
Transfer the shortcrust pastry onto the work surface, work it quickly into a loaf shape, wrap it in plastic wrap, and place it in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes.
After the time in the refrigerator, take the dough and roll it out to about 0.4 inches thick with a rolling pin, transfer it to a non-stick or parchment paper-lined cake pan (preferably with a springform).
Prick the base with a fork and fill it with the previously prepared grape compote, leveling it with a spoon.
Arrange the edges and with the excess dough, form decorative strips to place on the surface.
Bake the Vittorina cake in a preheated oven at 350°F and cook it for 30 – 40 minutes in fan mode.
Once baked, remove it from the oven and let it cool before taking it out of the pan. Sprinkle powdered sugar on top as desired.
