The Sbrisolona is a cake originating from Mantua, the name indeed comes from brìsa, which in Mantuan means crumb.
It has become typical of all Northern Italy, from Emilia Romagna to Lombardy to Veneto, where there is a version called “fregolotta” or “rosegotta” made of just white flour and sugar.
Its origin dates back to the 1500s – 1600s, although almonds and spices were probably a later addition.
It was born at the Gonzaga court thanks to the court pastry chef Bartolomeo Stefani who made the sbrisolona the cake of marriage promises and births.
Suitable to be eaten after being dipped in grappa and accompanied by a fortified wine, in Lombardy it is also called the “three-cup cake” because corn flour, wheat flour, and sugar are added in equal parts.
My gluten-free version replaces the wheat flour with rice flour, and adds mango pulp, which you can substitute with other fruit of your choice.
Instead, find a savory version in the video below.
Very crumbly, the sbrisolona crumbles easily, it is not cut with a knife, but broken by hand like another cake you will find on the blog, typical of Liguria…
- Difficulty: Easy
- Cost: Economical
- Preparation time: 5 Minutes
- Portions: 6 people
- Cooking methods: Oven
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: All seasons
Ingredients
- 3.5 oz unpeeled almonds (+ for decoration)
- 0.5 cup sugar
- 0.5 cup corn flour
- 0.5 cup rice flour
- 1 egg yolk
- 1 lemon (zest only)
- 7 tbsps butter (or lard)
- 1 as needed mango (turned into pulp)
- as needed salt
Tools
- 1 Pan round pan 9-10 inches
Steps
Chop the almonds coarsely.
Mix the almonds with the sugar and flours, add a pinch of salt, the yolk, lemon zest, and cold butter (or lard).
Work the mixture with your hands.
Spread half of the mixture in a 9-inch pan, add the mango pulp, and cover with the rest of the mixture.
Decorate with almonds and bake in a static oven at 355°F for 35/40 minutes.
The suggestion is to accompany it with Malvasia or Passito di Pantelleria.
