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Chocolate Tenerina

17/11/2023

Chocolate Tenerina is a much-loved dessert, originating from Ferrara. It’s a chocolate cake with a crispy crust on the outside and a soft, moist heart on the inside. Here is the traditional recipe with a slight Italian touch in the method of preparation:

Ingredients

  • 200 g of high-quality dark chocolate
  • 100 g of sugar
  • 50 g of butter plus a little more for greasing the pan
  • 3 eggs
  • 1 tablespoon of flour type 00
  • A pinch of salt
  • Icing sugar for decorating (optional)

Preparation

  1. Preheat the oven to 170 °C.
  2. Grease a square or round pan with the butter and line it with parchment paper.
  3. Melt the broken chocolate and butter in a bain-marie or microwave, being careful not to burn it.
  4. Separate the yolks from the whites. Beat the whites until stiff with a pinch of salt.
  5. In a bowl, beat the yolks with the sugar until you get a frothy and clear mixture.
  6. Add the melted chocolate and butter to the yolks, mix well.
  7. Gently fold in the beaten egg whites, mixing from the bottom up to not deflate them.
  8. Add a tablespoon of sifted flour and mix until the mixture is smooth.
  9. Pour the mixture into the prepared pan and level the surface.
  10. Bake for about 20 minutes. The Tenerina should not be cooked completely, otherwise, it will lose its characteristic internal moisture.
  11. Let the Tenerina cool in the mold, then sprinkle with icing sugar before serving if desired.

Fun Fact

Tenerina owes its name to the tender and moist consistency that characterizes it. Legend has it that the dessert was very much loved by King Vittorio Emanuele III and Queen Elena of Montenegro, symbolizing the tenderness between the two sovereigns with its softness.

This cake is perfect for enjoying at the end of a dinner or as a snack. You can accompany it with a scoop of vanilla ice cream or a dusting of bitter cocoa for an even more interesting contrast.