Christmas Almond Parrozzo

Name: Christmas Almond Parrozzo
Prep time: 1 h
Total time: 1 h
Cuisine: European, Italian, Mediterranean
Ingredients: 6 Egg yolks; 200 g of sugar; 150 g of polenta flour (or semolina); 3 tbsp of Amaretto liqueur (or a few drops of almond extract); 1 Lemon; 60 ml of extra virgin olive oil; 6 egg whites whipped; 200 g of grounded almonds (skin on); Butter and flour for the mould.; 350 g of dark chocolate; 20 g of unsalted butter

5 steps

Prep:1h

Half of you probably never heard the word Parrozzo before and the other half are still wondering if it is a swear or a bad word in a faraway foreign language, but rest assure I promise you there is no malarkey here. The weird name of this rustic almond and semolina cake covered with dark chocolate is attributed to the fact that it is inspired by the rustic bread prepared in the Abruzzese household back in the days, in fact in the local dialect was called PANE ROZZO (rustic bread), that quickly became PARROZZO. This magnificent cake is dated early 20th century and owes its (local) success to the famous Italian Poet Gabriele D’Annunzio that once tasted the Parrozzo for the first time fell so much in love with it that he went and composed a poem to honour it! Yes, you heard right, that’s how far we go when we deeply love our food!

Updated at: Sun, 24 Dec 2023 00:17:04 GMT

Nutrition balance score

Unbalanced

Glycemic Index

Low

Glycemic Load

High

Nutrition per serving

Calories728.2 kcal (36%)

Total Fat43.3 g (62%)

Carbs72.3 g (28%)

Sugars44.4 g (49%)

Protein13.7 g (27%)

Sodium48.5 mg (2%)

Fiber7.5 g (27%)

% Daily Values based on a 2,000 calorie diet

Ingredients

8 servings

6egg yolks

200gsugar

150gpolenta flour

or semolina

3 TbspAmaretto liqueur

or a few drops of almond extract

1lemon

60mlextra virgin olive oil

6egg whites

whipped

200ggrounded almonds

For the chocolate

350gdark chocolate

20gunsalted butter

Instructions

Step 1

Whip the egg whites until foamy and firm.

Step 2

Using and electric whisk whip the egg yolks with the sugar until pale and fluffy. Now gradually add to the egg yolks mixture the lemon zest, grounded almonds, olive oil, liqueur and polenta flour and incorporate gently. Lastly fold in gently with a spatula the whipped egg whites and try to keep as fluffy as possible. The mixture will be a bit grainy but that is normal.

Step 3

Grease with butter a 18cm round stainless-steel bowl to use as half sphere cake tin and dust it with a little flour. Now pour the cake mixture in the bowl and bake at 160 degrees for about 50/55 minutes. When cook the Parrozzo will be well golden on the surface and firm in consistency. Remember to always test your cake with a wooden skewer for a piece of mind, on this my mum was always right! If the skewer used to pierce the cake come out clean it means it Is cooked, if the skewer is wet and with pieces of cake stacked to it, the cake likely needs a few more minutes.

Step 4

Let the Parrozzo cool for 15 minutes and carefully remove it from the mold. Place the Cake upside down on a rack with a baking tray underneath and melt the chocolate and butter on bain-marie. When the chocolate is liquid pour it on top of the cake all in one go making sure no areas are left uncovered. If necessary you can collect the chocolate drained on the baking tray, melt it again and repeat the operation for extra coating.

Step 5

Let it cool and set for 1 hour and enjoy it! Store the Parrozzo in a sealed bag or container for up to a week.