Torta caprese al cioccolato bianco

One of my very first food memories in Italy harkens all the way back to 2003, when I was 14 years old. It was a scorching August evening, at a restaurant somewhere in Calabria. I can’t remember what I ordered, but I do know that my brother opted for spaghetti allo scoglio, i.e spaghetti with lots shellfish. Before digging in, he reached for the little bowl of Parmesan at the table — an acceptable garnish for pasta, or so he thought. No sooner had his hand reached the parmigiano, the nearest waiter promptly swatted it away, scolding him in rapid Italian. Neither my brother or I spoke any Italian at the time, but the message was clear: seafood shall never be eaten with cheese. Never!

My home country plays fast and loose when it comes to food rules (the home of the free, even when it comes to our cuisine, apparently). We like put pineapple on our pizza, serve our kids milk to drink at dinner, and have a penchant for pairing bacon with dessert and chicken with waffles. Italy stands in stark contrast to this, following a strict set of culinary rules: apart from the dairy-and-seafood-shall-never-cross paths one, there are other tenants such as, but not limited to: a cappuccino must be consumed before noon and no later; meatballs are a second course, never served with spaghetti; pasta must be cooked only until al dente; dinner isn’t eaten before 7:30pm; and more here.

My stance is two-fold: while I certainly have respect for tradition — and that might be what maintains the high caliber of Italian cuisine! — I don’t think there’s any harm in shaking things up once in a while (blame this on my American side). For example: while tiramisù is lovely in its classic form, it’s also pretty nice with strawberries; I don’t mind a carbonara made with artichokes or zucchini along with the guanciale; creativity actually lends itself well to the blank slate that is a pizza crust, and chicken can — gasp! — actually make a pretty good topping, as my favorite pizzeria has demonstrated. Purists might say that these are variations of classic dishes, and not the dish itself, but honestly: does it really matter if it tastes good?

And with that in mind: why not make a Torta Caprese with white chocolate instead of dark?

First things first: torta caprese — not to be confused with insalata caprese — is a cake that originates from the island of Capri. It swaps out flour for ground almonds, and is bittersweet and brownie-like, with a shiny, crackly lid. I learned from these white chocolate brownies that this same texture — fudgey interior and shattery exterior — can be achieved with white chocolate, not just dark. With this in mind, the recipe cogs started to turn: could this classic Italian dolce be successfully revisited, rethought, and slightly turned on its head by casting cioccolato bianco in the starring role?

The answer is a resounding yes. Here we have a torta that boasts a soft, dare-I-say silky consistency, save the occasional pleasant crunch of an almond. The white chocolate renders the cake undoubtedly sweet (what is white chocolate if not saccharine?) and the butter rich, but no matter: a dash of sunshine-y lemon deftly cuts through it all. A dusting of powdered sugar over the finished cake is not mandatory, but is a simple touch that makes the presentation factor increase by tenfold. This a chic, less-is-more kind of cake — no layers, frosting, or glaze — meaning it can gloriously wear many hats, too: a slice is divine for dessert, or for snack, or at 4:42pm on a Tuesday in your office, when you’ve been there since 7:40am ahead of a workshop you’ve been organizing for months (I speak from experience). Bonus: it’s a dessert that improves with a day or so in the fridge, where its citrus flavor intensfies and its texture becomes nearly fudgey. Double bonus: this torta is flour-free, for all of you eliminating or avoiding gluten. Best of all: you can see the step-by-step here, as I experiment with the new blog equipment I got for my birthday recently (thank you, A.C).

Next shake-up ideas rattling around my brain: brutti ma buoni made with pistachios instead of hazelnuts? cacio e pepe risotto? pepperoni focaccia? meatballs alla puttanesca? paella-style suppli’? After all: rules were made to be broken, right?

A couple of notes: VERY IMPORTANT: white chocolate burns a lot easier than semi-sweet or milk chocolate. The first time I made this cake, the surface browned incredibly quickly. I would recommend covering the cake with aluminum foil as soon as it is a light golden brown — at the 20 minute mark, in my experience. When beating the egg whites, be sure that your bowl is very clean and that there are no bits of yolk that end up with the whites — a less than clean bowl or yolk will prevent the egg whites from whipping. If you do get a bit of yolk in the white, be sure to remove it completely with a spoon. I also made a version of this cake where I emphasized the lemon over the white chocolate (delicious). If you want to do the same, use the zest of 4 lemons instead of 3, and up the lemon juice to 1/3 cup (about 5.5 tablespoons). Almond flour can be used in place of the ground almonds if you prefer. You can also play around with the ingredients; substitute hazelnuts or walnuts for the almonds and flavor with vanilla and/or orange instead of lemon. Next time I make this, I’ll play around and substitute pistachios for the almonds.

Looking for more cake recipes? Click here.
For more white chocolate-y desserts, have a look at the first recipes here.
For a classic Torta Caprese, click here.

TORTA CAPRESE AL CIOCCOLATO BIANCO

Serves 8-10. Recipe barely adapted from Cooking with Manuela.

Ingredients:
7 ounces (200 grams) good quality white chocolate, chopped
6 ounces (170 grams) unsalted butter
5 eggs, divided
3/4 cup (150 grams) sugar
1/4 cup (4 tablespoons) freshly squeezed lemon juice (from about 1 large lemon)
3 lemons, zested (see notes)
3 cups (300 grams) peeled whole almonds
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder

Powdered sugar for dusting

Directions:
1.) Line or grease a 9-inch round springform pan. Preheat the oven to 350F (180C).

2.) Using a food processor, grind the almonds until fine. Set aside.

3.) In a double boiler or in a small pan over low heat, melt together the butter and white chocolate. Whisk until smooth, and set aside to cool.

4.) Place the sugar in a large bowl and add the lemon zest. Optional: for extra lemon flavor, rub the lemon zest into the sugar to release its oil (thus ensuring maximum citrus impact). Add the egg yolks to the lemon sugar and beat (with an electric mixer or a whisk, if you prefer) until light and foamy. Beat in the lemon juice.

5.) Next, add the melted butter and white chocolate mixture — now slightly cooled — to the egg yolk-sugar mixture, and beat some more. Fold in the ground almonds, salt, and baking powder, and mix until combined.

6.) Beat the egg whites in a separate bowl until it reaches the firm peak stage. Gently fold into the cake batter — we don’t want them too deflate! — until no obvious white streaks of egg white remains.

7.) Pour cake batter into the prepared pan, and bake for 40 to 45 minutes until golden and set. As white chocolate burns quickly, keep an eye on this cake, and cover it with aluminum foil when it turns a golden brown (see notes). The cake is done when a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, with a few moist crumbs attached.

8.) Let the cake cool completely before remove the sides of the springform pan (if you’re too impatient, like I was, the edges of the cake will break — whoops). Serve dusted with powdered sugar.