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Barozzi Cake

17/11/2023

The Barozzi Cake is an exquisite chocolate cake from Vignola, in Emilia-Romagna. It is also known as “Torta nera” (Black Cake) and is characterized by its dense consistency and deep cocoa and coffee aroma. The traditional recipe is secret and guarded by the Gollini pastry shop in Vignola, but there are several versions that approximate the original. Here is a recipe inspired by the traditional Barozzi Cake.

Ingredients

  • 200 g of peeled almonds
  • 200 g of granulated sugar
  • 100 g of butter
  • 150 g of dark chocolate
  • 1 tablespoon of instant coffee
  • 1 tablespoon of rum (or other liquor of your choice)
  • 5 eggs
  • 1 pinch of salt
  • 20 g of unsweetened cocoa powder
  • Powdered sugar for decoration

Preparation

  1. Preheat the oven to 180 °C.
  2. Toast the almonds in the oven or in a pan for a few minutes, then let them cool and finely chop.
  3. Melt the chocolate with the butter in a double boiler and mix to obtain a smooth and homogeneous cream. Add the tablespoon of instant coffee and the liquor, mixing well.
  4. Separate the yolks from the whites and beat the yolks with the sugar until you get a frothy and light mixture.
  5. Add the melted chocolate to the yolk and sugar mixture, then incorporate the chopped almonds and cocoa powder.
  6. Whip the egg whites to stiff peaks with a pinch of salt and fold them gently into the chocolate and almond mixture, trying to keep them from deflating.
  7. Pour the batter into a buttered and floured cake mold (or lined with parchment paper) and bake for about 30-35 minutes. The cake should be moist inside, so be careful not to overbake.
  8. Remove the cake from the oven and let it cool completely before removing it from the mold.
  9. Before serving, dust the Barozzi Cake with powdered sugar to taste.

Curiosity

The truth is that the original recipe for Barozzi Cake includes a mysterious ingredient that the Gollini pastry shop has never revealed. So, every attempt at replication comes close but will never be the original! The cake owes its name to Jacopo Barozzi, known as il Vignola, a famous Renaissance architect born in Vignola.

Enjoy tasting this delight from Emilia that combines the intense flavor of chocolate with the refinement of almonds!

Barozzi Cake