Ingredients
Italian-style pound cake, baked in a loaf pan
For layering
2 cups ricotta cheese, strained
1 1/2 tablespoons cream
1/4 cup sugar
2 tablespoons orange-flavored extract
3 tablespoons mixed candied fruit, chopped
2 tablespoons semisweet chocolate, grated
Chocolate frosting
12 ounces semisweet chocolate
1/4 cup coffee
1/2 pound butter
Equipment needed
Loaf pan 9 inches by 3 inches wide
Directions
o Make pound cake. Cool.
o Cut the cake horizontally into 3 slabs.
o In a bowl add ricotta with cream, sugar and orange-flavored extract. Beat until smooth.
o Fold in the semisweet chocolate and candied fruit to the ricotta mixture.
o Spread 1/3 of the ricotta mixture on the bottom slab of the cake.
o Top the ricotta mixture with the next slab; spread another 1/3 of the ricotta mixture on it.
o Top the ricotta mixture with the next slab and spread the remainder of the ricotta mixture.
o Top the ricotta mixture with the last slab.
o Place the layered cake in the fridge and cool for about 3 hours.
o Meanwhile make the frosting. Place the chocolate and coffee in a pan. Over low heat melt the chocolate, stirring constantly.
o Add the butter and stir for a little until the butter is half melted.
o Remove from heat and keep stirring.
o Beat the mixture until it is very smooth.
o Place the mixture in the fridge and chill for about an hour.
o Spread the frosting on the cake.
o Keep the cake in the fridge for about 8 hours before serving.
Notes
The cake shown in this entry was made by the lady who took its photo, Mary Melfi, following Rita Ferrara's recipe... well, almost following it. This Mary did not use a "pound cake mix" but rather a ciambella mix (Actually, I used Rita Palazzo's Molisani lemon-flavored "Ciambella" cake recipe which can be found in this category). Also I didn't add any coffee to the chocolate frosting, worried it might make the frosting bitter (O.K., it's well-known in culinary circles that Sicilians make use of a lot more than 1/4 cup espresso coffee in their chocolate frosting with no ill-effects, but I couldn't bring myself to do it). In any case, the cake that was made following more or less the recipe in this entry was quite superb. Sicilians do have the edge when it comes to making desserts.... Photo and notes: Mary Melfi. |
