Juicy Post: It Is Its Own Death – Ciambellone

The Proper Funeral For A Coffee Cake

“È la morte  sua” quoted my son-in-law from Le Marche, Italy. He was waxing poetic about the seductive deliciousness of dunking a slice of correctly baked ciambellone into coffee at breakfast. His nostalgia for this tradition totally eluded me, but I got the gist of the proverb. Tatiana and I both started baking different coffee cakes to see what made a particular style such perfection for dunking and eating, that in the end it was its own death.  It would be sweet, but not overly so.  It should have a spice or citrus zest combination and maybe a few finely chopped nuts and raisins, but nothing over the top like American sticky buns.  The cake texture couldn’t fall apart or be too dry during its fatal dives. Crunchy sugar or a glaze wouldn’t be deal-killers for the contestant cake, but restraint was the byword. Also, the crust must be crisp, not sweaty. And, finally, it needs to cling to its quality at room temperature. Under a cake dome to be sure, but never in the fridge. 

I tried two from Artusi’s cookbook. Not even repeated dips into coffee saved its nothing flavor and texture. Next we tried one from The Silver Spoon Cookbook (the cookbook every Italian bride used to receive as a gift).  It was okay, but certainly not worth wasting a cup of good Italian coffee on. I decided that what I needed (and maybe you did too) were some variations on the proverb’s theme. So here are three equally good dunking coffee cakes that can slowly die in coffee, baby coffee, hot chocolate or even as my grandsons do it – cold milk. 

Going Back to Maida Heatter

I personally went back to my beloved  copy of Maida Heatter’s Great Dessert Book. And my choice is Hungarian in derivation rather than Italian. But, hey, the Austro-Hungarian Empire had terrific cafés and knew a thing or two about pastries and coffee. Even with the glaze and a restrained filling of walnuts, currants and cocoa and cinnamon, it hit the sweet spot and was indeed consumed to its own death with coffee. Should you search out this book, be advised that later versions omitted some of the recipes. The original was first printed in 1965 and had several reprints after that (my copy was a reprint in 1974). Make sure the copy includes this cake and the Buttermilk Lemon Cake (another delicious Maida Heatter classic) so that you know that it is the proper version. Bonnie Slotnick Books is an excellent place to start, but check with other resellers of out-of-print cookbooks too. 

Ciambellone As It Should Be

The second one, which became “The Test” against classic ciambellone recipes, is the one featured in Domenica Marchetti’s now out-of-print book, Big Night In. It is her mother’s recipe, which, according to Domenica, she occasionally doubled to fit a 12-cup mold. This recipe fits a 6-7 cup ring cake pan. Domenica has written several excellent cookbooks, and I cannot understand  why this outstanding one slipped through the publisher’s fingers and is now out of print. I was looking through my copy and counted several constant repeaters: Sour Cherry-Mascarpone Cake, Sour Cherry Gelato With Bittersweet Chocolate-Cherry Sauce, Beef Tenderloin alla Bandiera Italiana, a beef fillet with three sauces in the colors of the Italian flag, Slow Roasted Arctic Char with Sautéed Fennel and Pernod – and there are more.  Also check through her website, Domenica Cooks, for her cooking inspirations and tours.

An American Ciambellone

Tatiana made some happy changes to the Wednesday Chef ciambellone recipe. Her family loves it for breakfast or a mid-afternoon snack.  She removed the lemon zest and added chopped chocolate to make it more interesting – and let’s face it – you know how we Americans can’t resist a hit of chocolate chips. It’s wonderfully versatile and holds very well for up to a week, especially if stored in a domed cake stand or covered in plastic wrap. Her final touch is that she butters and sugars the cake pan interior to help it unmold easily and to give this cake a delicious crystallized sugar finish.

Some Final Thoughts On Cake Pans

I use my copper molds for baking and they release beautifully. All the cakes baked for this post were done in these molds from Birth Gramm in Switzerland or Christian Wagner in Germany.  I have reservations about non-stick coatings on baking pans, not only for the serious environmental concerns in their manufacture, but also for two other reasons. Once the coating inevitably scrapes off, the baking pan gets tossed away and just ends up in a landfill. And second, you are always advised to butter and flour it anyway, so is it really “non-stick”? Anodized aluminum pans by Fat Daddio’s will give you excellent baking and release results as well. Without any environmental or ethical hazards.