Recipe of the Week: Certosino della Tilde (Christmas Chocolate Bread)
My mother’s name was Tilde, and she was a very famous pastry chef in our city. This is her recipe for making what we call in Bologna “Pain Special” or special bread. During the Christmas holidays, our bakery, Tilde, sold so many of these that we could hardly keep up with demand. Enjoy this delicious holiday cake with your family. Serves eight. (Chef tip: Be careful mixing this cake, it is very thick and sticky.)
2 cups honey
1 1/4 cups sugar
1/2 cup water
4 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons cocoa
1 1/2 cups vanilla wafers cookie crumbs
1/2 cup golden raisins
1 cup Marsala wine
1/2 cup candied orange peel
1/2 cup apricot jelly
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1 cup toasted almonds
1/4 cup toasted pine nuts
8 ounces chocolate coarsely chopped
Candied cherries, almonds (for decorations)
In a heavy three-quart saucepan, heat honey, sugar and water; cook at low heat until sugar melts. Remove from heat and reserve.
Soak the raisins in the Marsala wine. Sift the flour with baking powder, cocoa and salt to a large bowl. Slowly pour in honey mixture and mix well with a wooden spoon. Stir in the breadcrumbs, jelly, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves and vanilla extract. Add raisins, orange peel, almonds, pine nuts and chocolate to the mixture.
Line two nine-inch cake pans with parchment paper. Grease and reserve. Preheat oven to 350˚. Pour the batter into the prepared pans. Decorate with candied cherries, orange peel and almonds. Bake for 45 minutes to an hour or until cake tests done. Lower the oven to 300 degrees. Place slices on a cookie sheet and bake for 10 more minutes. Remove from the oven. Cool.