The Ticino Bread Cake, a rustic dessert typical of Italian Switzerland, was created to reuse stale bread.
It is moist, rich, and spiced, often prepared for popular festivities. Until the first half of the last century, this cake was made for village or religious festivals
Also called Milk Cake, Bread Cake, Turta da ca, Bread and Milk Cake, its recipe has been passed down through generations in Ticino families.
The basic ingredients are: stale bread, milk, sugar, eggs. Some variations include chocolate pieces, orange zest, or dried figs, generally adding pine nuts on top and cocoa in the batter.
Similar bread-based cakes can also be found in Italy, especially in Piedmont. In Val d’Ossola, a “bread and milk” or “vigezzina” cake is made.
- Difficulty: Easy
- Cost: Very cheap
- Rest time: 3 Hours
- Preparation time: 10 Minutes
- Portions: 6People
- Cooking methods: Oven
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: All seasons
Ingredients
- 10.5 oz bread (preferably stale)
- 2 cups milk
- 0.5 cup sugar
- 2 eggs
- 1.4 tbsp butter (melted)
- 2 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
- to taste cinnamon powder
- to taste nutmeg
- 1.75 oz almonds (and/or walnuts)
- 2.1 oz raisins
- 1.75 oz candied peel (optional)
- 1 tbsp Ticino grappa (optional)
- to taste breadcrumbs
Tools
- 1 Baking Pan 9-10 inch
Steps
Put the bread in a bowl, pour in the hot milk and let it rest for 2–3 hours. Then mash well with a fork or blend roughly.
Add sugar, eggs, melted butter, spices, cocoa, nuts, soaked raisins, candied peel, and alcohol if using, to the soaked bread. Mix well.
Butter and sprinkle breadcrumbs on a baking pan. Pour in the batter and level it out. Distribute the pine nuts. Bake in a static oven at 356°F for 45–55 minutes, until well cooked and golden on top.
Let it cool completely
Curiosities:
In 1974, a competition was organized in Lugano for the best homemade bread cake in the canton. More than 400 people participated.
The recipe for the awarded cake is published in Ticino at the Table.
