Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking - Marcella Hazan [273]
2. For the chocolate filling: Separate the eggs, and beat the yolks with 1 teaspoon sugar until they turn pale yellow.
3. Put water in the bottom of a double boiler, bring it to a gentle, but steady simmer, then put the chocolate drops or chopped or grated semisweet chocolate into the top of the double boiler. When the chocolate has melted, pour it, a little at a time, over the egg yolks, mixing rapidly, until all the chocolate has been thoroughly amalgamated into the egg yolks.
4. Beat the egg whites in a bowl until they form stiff peaks. Mix 1 tablespoon of egg white into the chocolate and egg yolk mixture, then add the remainder, folding them in gently so as not to collapse them.
5. Spoon the chocolate filling into the pan, over the rum- and coffee-soaked cake slices. Top and cover with more slices of cake soaked in rum and coffee, and over them fold the moistened cheesecloth extending over the rim of the pan. Refrigerate until the following day at least.
6. When you take the cake out of the refrigerator, unfold the cheesecloth, pulling it away from the top. Turn the pan over on a platter, and shake it abruptly to loosen the cake, letting it drop onto the platter. Pull off the cheesecloth covering it.
7. If frosting with chocolate: Bring water to a simmer in the bottom of a double boiler. In the top put the 4 ounces of chocolate drops or chopped or grated semisweet chocolate together with 1 teaspoon butter. When the chocolate has melted, stir in the 1 tablespoon of heavy cream. Spread the frosting evenly over the top and sides of the diplomatico. Refrigerate for an hour or so until the chocolate hardens.
If frosting with whipped cream: Put 1 cup very cold heavy cream and 1 teaspoon sugar into the bowl you had been keeping in the freezer. Whip it with a whisk until it is stiff. Use it to cover the top and sides of the cake.
Garnish the cake with a simple arrangement of either walnuts and candied fruit or fresh raspberries and blueberries or other berries.
Ahead-of-time note You can leave the diplomatico in the refrigerator for up to a week before proceeding with the next step.
Zuccotto
THAT THIS dome-shaped dessert is a Florentine specialty appears certain; what there is no general agreement upon is whether the name is an affectionate reference to the cupola that dominates Florence’s skyline, or a less than reverent allusion to the clergy, inasmuch as in the Tuscan dialect, a cardinal’s skullcap is also called a zuccotto. However it may have come by its name, zuccotto is another of those delightful confections that is so easy to take, and happily, just as easy to make. It may look like a pastry chef’s triumph, but the greatest demand its preparation makes on you is that of assembling a far from daunting list of mostly ready-made components.
For 6 servings
2 ounces shelled almonds, blanched and skinned as described
2 ounces shelled whole hazelnuts
A 1½-quart bowl, its bottom as perfectly round as possible
Cheesecloth
A 10- to 12-ounce pound cake
3 tablespoons Cognac
2 tablespoons Maraschino liqueur (see note below)
2 tablespoons Cointreau or white Curaçao liqueur
5 ounces semisweet chocolate in drops or squares
A mixing bowl kept in the freezer
2 cups very cold heavy whipping cream
¾ cup confectioners’ sugar
A double boiler
Note Maraschino is a fine Italian liqueur made from the pulp and crushed pits of the Dalmatian marasca cherry, with a distinctive flavor that no other fruit cordial duplicates. One of its most appealing uses is with marinated fresh fruit. Do not confuse the liqueur with the cherries that go by the same name; the latter are quite ordinary preserved and artificially colored cherries. There’s no perfect substitute for Maraschino,