The “pasticciotto cake” is a true delight, a triumph of flavors and aromas that will win over your guests. The recipe I was inspired by is from the chef Palma D’Onofrio, to which I made some modifications, dictated by my tastes. We can prepare this delicious cake for Sunday lunch, for a party, and on special occasions. The pasticciotto cake is very easy to make, requires no special skills, and expresses its best after resting for a day.
- Difficulty: Very easy
- Cost: Medium
- Rest time: 1 Hour
- Preparation time: 30 Minutes
- Portions: 16
- Cooking methods: Oven
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: Autumn, Winter, and Spring
Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 tbsps lard (equivalent to approximately 1 heaping tablespoon)
- 2 egg yolks
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1 pinch fine salt
- as needed flour for the table
- 2 cups milk
- 1/4 cup heavy cream
- 4 egg yolks
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1/3 cup cornstarch
- as needed vanilla flavoring
- as needed lemon zest
- 1 jar sour cherries in syrup, 240 g
Preparation
Let’s prepare the custard. In a saucepan, warm the milk and cream over very low heat.
In the meantime, sift the cornstarch into another pot, add the pinch of salt, the grated zest of half a lemon, the vanilla flavoring, and the 4 egg yolks. Stir lightly with a steel whisk.
Very slowly pour the warm milk into the egg mixture, simultaneously stirring with the steel whisk, until a smooth, lump-free creamy mixture is obtained.
Place the pot on the stove over low heat and continue stirring until the cream thickens. Turn off the heat and transfer the custard to another container to cool.
Let’s prepare the shortcrust pastry. Sift the flour into a bowl, add the salt, egg yolks, sugar, flavorings, and lard. Knead the ingredients until you obtain a smooth and firm dough, which we will let rest in the fridge for at least an hour, closed in a container or wrapped in plastic wrap. After the time has passed, turn on the oven and set it to 392°F.
In the meantime, let the sour cherries drain.
Take the dough out of the fridge and divide it into two parts, one slightly larger than the other. Flour a worktable and roll out the larger dough piece with a rolling pin.
Transfer it into a tart pan lined with parchment paper. First, place the sour cherries on the shortcrust base and distribute them evenly; then pour in the custard and level it with the back of a spoon.
Roll out the smaller dough piece and cover the cake. Finish the edges and make a small cross incision on the top to allow excess steam to escape.
Bake our pasticciotto cake at mid-height in the hot oven for about 30 minutes or until golden. I recommend letting the pasticciotto cake rest for at least 24 hours so you can cut it without risk of breaking and fully enjoy it.
The extra idea. If you encounter difficulties in rolling out the dough, roll it directly on already floured parchment paper and then transfer the parchment paper with the dough directly into the pan.
Below are some sweet and savory recipes to use the egg whites left over from making the pasticciotto cake: gluten-free lady’s kisses, mini muffins with pink grapefruit and blueberries, basic recipe for wafers, cups, and sweet cigars, sage potato nuggets without yolks, Neapolitan arancini, and more that you will find on the blog.
