Erica De Mane

Recipe:Torta di Miele

When I was a kid Christmas day always started early with a slice of pannetone and coffee (even when I was little I was served coffee on special occasions). The yeasty pannetone was more bread than cake, but it was sweet enough to be appealing to any kid. A few years ago I saw one of Mario Batali’s TV shows where he made a torta di Mele, a semi-sweet apple yeast cake. I’d eaten versions of that several times in central Italy, and the mother of a pizza maker in the West Village in Manhattan where I live used to bake one for his shop. The smell of it baking was enticing; sweet, slightly sour from the yeast, fruity, but with a strong cinnamon aroma. Maybe I detected a hint of some sort of liquor (grappa? brandy?). The cake didn’t really go with pizza, but often I’d drop into the shop just for a slice of it and a glass of wine. The pizza place is now gone, and I really miss that apple cake.I made up my own version by using Batali’s solid recipe as a base and adding spices and a bit of booze and more sugar until I came up with something close to the pizza shop’s cake. This year I’m making it for Christmas morning, in place of pannetone. You can serve it with espresso or cappuccino, but personally I like it best with a wake-up glass of prosecco. Merry Christmas to you!

Torta di Mele

(Serves 6 to 8)

1 tablespoon softened butter for greasing the pan
2 fairly plain biscotti (I used a mild almond-flavored type)
4 firm apples (Cortlands or Granny Smiths are good), skinned and thinly sliced
1 tablespoon Calvados or cognac
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
3/4 cup sugar
1 cup flour
A few generous scrapings of nutmeg
2 extra-large eggs, at room temperature, separated
1/2 cup whole milk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 package yeast
Powdered sugar for the top

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Butter a 9-inch springform pan. Place the biscotti in a food process and pulse to a crumb. Coat the pan with the biscotti crumbs, shaking out any excess.

In a large bowl, toss the apple slices with the Calvados or cognac, half the cinnamon, and a tablespoon of the sugar. Arrange the apples in the pan in a not-too-fussy circular fashion, making two layers.

In a large bowl mix until well blended the remaining sugar and cinnamon and the flour, nutmeg, egg yolks, milk, vanilla, and yeast. Let sit for about 5 minutes.

Meanwhile, pour the egg whites into another bowl and beat with an electric blender until they’re stiff and glossy. Add the whites to the batter, folding them in until they’re just blended but still a bit streaky. Pour the batter over the apples and bake until the top is browned and feels springy (and a tester (I use a wooden shish kebab skewer) comes out dry when inserted into the top), about 50 minutes. Cool on a rack for about 1/2 hour. Remove the rim from the pan, leaving the cake on the base. Sprinkle with powdered sugar before serving.