The beak cake with amaretti is a typical cake from my city Lucca, a true delight, traditionally prepared for “Santa Zita” celebrated on April 27th. However, it is mostly consumed during holidays, but you can find it practically all year round in bakeries or pastry shops. The original beak cake is the herb cake; over the years, many variations like chocolate, amaretti, etc., have been added. Today I propose my version with amaretti, very delicious with a bitter aftertaste of amaretti, a delight.
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- Difficulty: Easy
- Cost: Economical
- Preparation time: 20 Minutes
- Portions: 8 servings
- Cooking methods: Oven
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: All seasons
Ingredients for Amaretti Beak Cake
- 2 cups flour
- 2/3 cup sugar
- 1/2 cup butter
- 2 eggs
- 1 packet baking powder
- 1 packet vanillin
- 1 pinch salt
- 14 oz amaretti
- 3 oz blanched almonds
- 3 egg whites
- Half a small glass rum
- zest of half a lemon
- 2 tbsps sugar (optional, the recipe does not require it)
Tools
- 1 Food processor
- 3 Bowls
- 1 Non-stick pan
- 1 Pastry wheel
Preparation of Amaretti Beak Cake
Let’s see how to prepare the amaretti cake.
First, prepare the shortcrust pastry. In a bowl, pour the flour, butter at room temperature and cut into pieces, sugar, a pinch of salt, sifted baking powder, vanillin, and eggs. Work all the ingredients well by hand, and when it starts to amalgamate, transfer to a floured board and finish kneading until it forms a smooth and homogeneous dough. I prepare the dough by hand, but if you have a planetary mixer, it’s fine; just put all the ingredients in the bowl and start at speed 2 until the dough forms, maybe stopping every 2 minutes to avoid overheating the eggs and butter.
Let the shortcrust pastry rest in the fridge wrapped in cling film for about 30 minutes.
Meanwhile, prepare the filling, put the amaretti in a food processor and chop them, place them in a large bowl, add the liqueur and mix. Also, chop the almonds and add them to the amaretti. Separately, whip the egg whites until stiff, then combine them with the chopped amaretti and almonds, add a pinch of salt and grated lemon zest, and mix well; it will be a bit sticky. After resting, take the pastry, work it a bit, leave a small piece aside, and then roll it out with a rolling pin on a floured board, it should be at least half a centimeter thick, place it in the greased and floured pan, prick the bottom with a fork and remove the excess dough, considering you have to cover the entire edge. Pour the filling inside, spread it well, start cutting the edge of the pastry and fold it over itself to form the beaks. When you have made them all, roll out the remaining pastry and cut strips to decorate the cake. Bake in a hot oven and cook at 356°F (180°C) for about 40 minutes.
Notes
The original recipe does not include sugar, but as I wrote in the ingredients, if you think it’s too bitter for you, add 2 tablespoons of sugar to the filling. The beak cake, if left over, can be stored for up to 5 days in a closed container or inside the switched-off oven.
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