Original Caprese Cake. All the family secrets, explained step by step
This is the best caprese cake I’ve ever eaten, soft and moist, with an amazing taste and a unique aroma of almonds and chocolate, plus it’s gluten-free. It’s a guaranteed success, an irresistible dessert, especially for chocolate addicts.
The caprese cake is a Neapolitan dessert, typical of the island of Capri, and this is the family-tested recipe from my mother (obtained from a lady living in Capri) who is very jealous of this recipe (I had to ask her permission to publish it) even after numerous requests from many friends who, after tasting it, always asked me for mom’s secret caprese recipe.
In my family, mom’s famous caprese is prepared for every important occasion or holiday like Christmas, Easter, Valentine’s Day, in particular, we always make it at Christmas, but obviously, it’s good all year round, in the summer it is often served with vanilla ice cream and is a true delight.
The caprese is a gluten-free dessert.
This recipe is my main showstopper, you’ll impress your friends! It definitely belongs in the Blog section: “My Top Recipes“.
If you love typical Neapolitan cuisine, click on my Special: “Neapolitan DOC Cuisine“
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- Difficulty: Very Easy
- Cost: Medium
- Preparation time: 15 Minutes
- Portions: 10 people
- Cooking methods: Oven
- Cuisine: Regional Italian
- Region: Campania
- Seasonality: All seasons, Christmas
Ingredients for the Original Caprese Cake
- 18 oz almonds (whole shelled, with brown skin, I use Fatina)
- 18 oz butter (quality, I use Berna)
- 14 oz vanilla powdered sugar (I use PaneAngeli, or regular powdered sugar)
- 18 oz dark chocolate (quality, I use Novi at 52%)
- 8 egg yolks
- 2 eggs (whole)
- 0.7 oz potato starch
- 3 packets vanillin (or 2 tsp vanilla extract)
- 1.7 oz Cointreau (if unavailable, Grand Marnier)
- 0.07 oz fine salt
- to taste vanilla powdered sugar (to cover the surface)
- to taste whipped cream (to accompany, optional)
- to taste vanilla ice cream (to accompany, optional)
Tools for the Original Caprese Cake
- Bowls Guzzini set of bowls of various sizes
- Pot for bain-marie
- Stand Mixer Kenwood with 1400 W power, illuminated bowl
- Mixer electric Philips, with 450 W power
- Hand Blender Braun, 1000 W power and various accessories
- Aluminum Pan for pastiera
Steps for the Original Caprese Cake
First, you need to toast the almonds (1st secret): take a wide aluminum pan about 14 inches in diameter (the almonds should not overlap, but be in a single layer).
Pour the whole almonds with the brown skin into the pan, they should NOT be peeled (2nd secret).
Place the pan in a preheated oven at 210°F for about 14 minutes (depending on your oven).
Let the whole almonds cool well and then chop them with the mixer in two stages: 7 oz into small pieces (for 30 sec’) and the remaining 11 oz into a fine powder (for 40 sec’) (3rd secret).
You can do this operation of toasting and chopping the almonds even the day before to ease preparation times.
Now melt the chocolate in this way: take two pots suitable for bain-marie, pour water into one and dark chocolate into the other, melt the chocolate (the bain-marie water should NOT boil), and then – off the heat – add the butter in pieces and mix vigorously with a hand whisk until everything is well melted.
Let the chocolate and butter mixture cool.
In the mixer bowl with the paddle whisk (you can also mix the ingredients with a hand whisk), add: the chopped almonds, the vanilla powdered sugar, the starch, the fine salt, the vanilla extract, give another stir and add 8 yolks (reserve the 8 egg whites!) and two whole eggs and Cointreau (4th secret, it’s important that it’s an orange liqueur that pairs well with chocolate)
Mix the dough always with the paddle whisk, just enough time to blend the ingredients well (the eggs should not whip).
Then, add to the almond mixture, also the melted chocolate and butter mixture and give a final stir.Finally, whip the 8 whites until stiff peaks form and gently add them to the almond and chocolate mixture, with a hand whisk (I actually wear disposable gloves for food use and mix gently by hand) incorporate the stiff whites slowly, with movements from bottom to top, in this way you will get a homogeneous and velvety dough.
Pour the mixture into a conical aluminum pan 12.5 inches in diameter, 1.6 inches high, greased and floured (if you halve the doses, the pan should be 9.5 inches, 1.6 inches high).
Bake the caprese cake in a preheated static oven at 320°F for about 50-60 minutes (depends on your oven, do the toothpick test, it should come out dry).
It’s important that the baking is slow and in a static oven (5th secret).
Let the cake cool for at least 30 minutes and then, gently unmold it by flipping it directly onto a serving plate (it should be served upside down).
Sprinkle the caprese cake with plenty of vanilla powdered sugar.
You can serve the caprese cake accompanied by whipped cream (better in winter) or vanilla ice cream (better in summer).
The caprese cake improves over time (as the flavors meld better), so you can safely prepare it in advance.
The caprese cake keeps well covered with an aluminum foil at room temperature and lasts up to 8 days, maintaining its softness.
Notes
I dedicate this recipe to my beloved sister Nichi, who flew to Heaven in 2019, and on December 10th celebrated every birthday with this cake.
Shopping Suggestions !!!
To weigh the ingredients of my preparations, I use this practical digital kitchen scale, with a wide removable bowl, tare function, and built-in timer.
To work the dough effortlessly, I use my Titanium Chef Patissier XL stand mixer with illuminated 7L bowl, 1400 W power, integrated scale, and blender, a faithful ally in the kitchen for: kneading, weighing, whipping, cooking, chopping, melting chocolate, pasteurizing eggs.
If instead, you are looking for a more affordable stand mixer, you can safely buy the practical Kenwood Titanium Chef Baker stand mixer, with double bowl 5L and 3.5L and 1200 W power, integrated scale.
To chop the almonds, I use either the large food processor included with my Kenwood stand mixer mentioned above, or the very handy chopping accessory of my Braun MultiQuick 7 Hand Blender.
To melt the chocolate in a bain-marie I use this dedicated bain-marie pot, in steel, suitable for induction cooktops.
The caprese cake is baked in the conical aluminum pan which is also used for pastiere.
You can purchase all the items I recommend above, on Amazon, at a great price, just click directly on the respective links.
FAQ (Questions and Answers)
What are the origins and history of the Caprese Cake?
The caprese cake is named in honor of the island of Capri and has uncertain origins. According to some sources, it seems that it was much loved by Princess Maria Carolina of Bourbon (wife of Ferdinand IV, the so-called King Nasone) who initially, taken by nostalgia for her Austria, nostalgically asked the chefs for a sacher cake. But the “Monzù” (the chefs of the Kingdom, were all of French origin) did not know the recipe. Maria Carolina didn’t know it either, so the chefs, to satisfy the queen, asked her to describe the taste and appearance of the sacher cake.
Using those memories, they tried to recreate the sacher, without succeeding; the mistake in preparation would later become the famous caprese that, in the end, also won over the demanding tastes of Maria Carolina.
However, another legend tells that it was instead invented in Capri by mistake around the 1920s, by a cook named Carmine Di Fiore who had to prepare an almond cake for three gangsters who came to the island (it seems it was ordered by Al Capone himself).
Perhaps out of distraction or haste to deliver it to those dangerous and unwanted guests, the cook forgot to add the flour (or confused it with cocoa). He realized it only when he took the cake out of the oven, but, to his surprise, it was very much appreciated by everyone.Does the original Neapolitan caprese cake contain yeast?
Absolutely NOT! It is essentially composed of 5 main ingredients: almonds, dark chocolate, eggs, butter, sugar.
Is the Caprese Cake gluten-free?
Yes! The caprese cake is flourless and gluten-free
How is the Caprese Cake stored?
The caprese cake can be stored at room temperature, covered with aluminum foil, for many days.
The caprese cake can also be frozen (do not put powdered sugar on the surface): it is better if you cut it into squares (as if they were chocolate brownies) and put it in an airtight container.
When serving it, you can take it out of the freezer, let it warm up at room temperature, and sprinkle it with powdered sugar only before serving.Where is the Caprese baked?
The caprese cake is baked in the conical aluminum pan also used for pastiere.
