Baked cassata is a typical Sicilian dessert: a shell of soft shortcrust pastry filled with delicious ricotta cream and chocolate chips. It is prepared in a round flared mold and completely covered with powdered sugar with diagonal stripes of cinnamon powder.
The evening before, place the ricotta to drain in a colander lined with cotton cloths to remove the whey.
Prepare the Sicilian shortcrust pastry, wrap it in cling film, and store it in the fridge.
The next day, sift the ricotta, weigh it, and add the sugar (about half the weight of the ricotta). Mix and add the chocolate chips.
Roll out the shortcrust pastry into a thin sheet and line a buttered and floured mold, removing the excess pastry.
Add crushed biscuits or pieces of sponge cake to the bottom, then pour in the ricotta cream and level it.
Cover with another layer of shortcrust pastry, seal the edges, and make small cuts on the surface.
Bake in a preheated fan oven at 180°C on the first rack from the bottom for about 45 minutes.
Let the cassata cool completely before removing it from the mold and decorate with powdered sugar and cinnamon.
Let the cassata rest for a whole night before serving.
Round flared mold
Rolling pin
Colander
Cotton cloths
Store in the refrigerator and take out 10 minutes before serving.
Traditional Sicilian recipe with roots in the period of Arab rule.
Italia, Sicilia
