Torta della Nonna with a Sprinkling of Powdered Sugar
Torta della Nonna is a traditional Italian cake that is popular all across the country.
Ingredients
- pine nuts
- powdered sugar
French Shortcrust Pastry (Pate Sable)
- 175 g flour 00 6.2 oz
- 75 g powdered sugar 2.6 oz
- 2 egg yolks
- 100 g cold butter 3.5 oz
- a pinch of salt
Pastry Cream
- 3 egg yolk
- 70 g sugar 2.46 oz
- 30 g corn starch 2.5 tbsp
- 250 ml whole milk 1 cup
- 1 scraped vanilla bean
- 1 grated lemon peel
Instructions
French Shortcrust Pastry (Pate Sable)
- Put the flour, sugar, and butter, cut in small pieces, in a food processor until they become a sandy mixture.
- Put the mixture over on a pastry board; dig a hole in the center of the mixture and add the egg yolks, and salt.
- Using a fork, beat together the eggs and begin to incorporate the mixture of flour, starting with the inner rim of the hole.
- Knead everything until you get a smooth and homogeneous dough.
- Wrap the dough in transparent paper and put it in the fridge for 1 hr.
Pastry Cream
- Put the milk with the scraped vanilla pod in a small saucepan, and bring it to a boil.
- Remove the pan from the stove and filter the milk.
- Separately, in a bowl pour the egg yolks, the vanilla caviar, sugar, and the grated zest.
- Whisk vigorously until completely combined.
- When the mixture is blended, add the cornstarch sieved in, stir well to incorporate it.
- Pour the milk into the mixture of egg yolks, sugar, and rice starch.
- Put on the stove and stir constantly with a whisk (the egg begins to coagulate at 52 °C (125.6°F) temperature; the cooking should stop when it reaches just 67°C (152.6°F).
- Remove the cream from the stove as soon as it starts to thicken.
- Cool it quickly by pouring it into a cold pan and continue to stir with a whisk bringing it to a temperature below 50°C (122°F), this allows it to maintain the consistency of the cream intact.
- Cover with plastic wrap in contact with the surface of the cream, let it finish cooling at room temperature.
Assembling
- Remove the pastry from the fridge, divide it in two, work one piece with a rolling pin to form a 1/2 cm (0.2 inch) thick disk to line the greased and floured baking pan (6 inches).
- Cut the excess of shortcrust with a knife.
- Prick the dough with the tines of a fork without piercing it all the way.
- Pour in it the cream pastry and level it with the help of a spoon.
- Roll out the remaining pastry disk to an 0.2-inch-thick circle and set it over the leveled cream.
- Seal the edges by pressing them lightly with the tines of a fork.
- Brush the surface with beaten egg.
- Sprinkle with pine nuts and bake it in the preheated oven at 168°C (335°F) for 45-50 minutes.
- After letting it cool completely, serve it by sprinkling it with powdered sugar.
Notes
ENJOY!
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