Whether it’s for lunch or dinner, any self-respecting holiday menu leaves room for dessert. In Italy, that dessert is usually panettone, pandoro or themed cookies, but the options are really infinite – especially if you’re up for making a unique, less traditional cake! Here are a few of our suggestions for the holidays.
You can never go wrong with a chocolate cake
To make this simple chocolate holiday cake, you’ll need 5 oz of dark chocolate and 2 ½ oz of milk chocolate. Roughly chop the chocolate and transfer it to a saucepan with 5 oz of butter. Heat until melted. In the meantime, beat 4 eggs in a bowl with 5 oz of sugar and 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract. Incorporate 5 oz of sifted flour with 1 teaspoon baking powder. Add to the melted chocolate and mix to combine. Then pour the batter into a buttered cake pan (perhaps shaped like a Christmas tree or shooting star to stay in theme). Bake at 355°F (180°C) for 30 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool. Whip 80 dl heavy cream with a couple tablespoons of powdered sugar using an electric mixer. Decorate to taste. And to make it even more colorful, add a little candied fruit!
What about a soft sponge cake?
The simplest things are often the best – like a soft Christmas cake with a sponge base. To make it, first whip 5 eggs with 4 ½ oz of sugar, adding 5 oz of flour a little at a time. Once the consistency of the mixture is smooth, add the grated peel of ½ lemon. Pour the batter into a suitably buttered and lightly floured cake tin. (For this cake, you can also use a themed mold.) Bake in the oven at 320°F (160°C) for at least 45 minutes. Halfway through baking, check it with a toothpick to make sure you don’t overbake. After baking the sponge cake, all that remains is decoration! Use a little freshly whipped cream or your preferring icing. To make the sponge cake more fragrant, you can also add a small portion of liqueur to the batter. (We suggest Cointreau and Grand Marnier.)
Santa Claus cake!
Children will love this one. To make a super cute Santa Claus cake, start by combining 4 eggs with 4 egg yolks and 5 oz of sugar in a bowl. Heat in a bain-marie for a few minutes and then whip with an electric mixer until stiff peaks form. Add 5 oz of flour, 2 oz of melted butter and a handful of grated orange peel. After mixing, place the batter into a buttered and floured round cake tin and bake in the oven at 355°F (180°C) degrees for 30 minutes. Once the cake has cooled, draw the mustache and Santa's beard using 7 oz of of cream whipped with 3 oz of dark chocolate. For the hat and eyes, instead, use colored almond paste. Making a Christmas cake has never been so much fun!
