Cassata is a traditional dessert from Sicily, made with ricotta cheese. This recipe comes from Convivio Rome Cooking Holidays.
Cassata and fresh seasonal fruit - Serves 6
The cuisine of Sicily is one of the most distinctive in Italy. Over the centuries, different waves of invaders colonised the island bringing with them different culinary traditions and ingredients. The Arabs had the greatest influence on Sicily’s cuisine, bringing ingredients such as citrus fruits, apricots, spices and almonds. They were also thought to have introduced ice-cream to the island, as well as all sorts of sweet pastries.
Cassata is perhaps the best known of all Sicilian desserts, and it’s now found on menus all over Italy. The word cassata is said to come from the Arabic ‘quasat’, which means ‘big round bowl’. Apparently, in the 16th-century, religious authorities in part of Sicily banned nuns from making cassata during Holy Week as it was such a distraction from their duties.
Essentially cassata is a layered cake, with sponge, ricotta cheese and candied peel.
This recipe for cassata comes from the kitchen of Convivio Rome Italian Cooking Holidays. You can read more about them here.
Ingredients for cassata
350 g fresh ricotta
150 g icing sugar
vanilla flavouring
50 g of dark chocolate chips
80 g candied citrus peel
200 g of sponge cake (either ready made trifle sponges or homemade - see below)
around 3 tbsp sweet liqueur (optional)
fresh seasonal fruit (for example: pears and strawberries)
icing sugar for decoration
Ingredients for the sponge cake
4 eggs
120 g of caster sugar
100 g of flour
vanilla flavouring / or lemon or orange grated peel
butter to grease the cake tin.
Method for sponge cake
1. Mix the egg yolks with the sugar until smooth. Whip the egg whites separately until very firm and add them to the mix.
2. Sift the flour then slowly fold it in to the mix.
3. Add the grated citrus peel or vanilla flavouring.
4. Bake the sponge cake for 40 minutes at moderate heat. Turn out the sponge when cooked and let it cool.
Method for cassata
1. Mix the ricotta with the sieved icing sugar, until it turns into a
smooth cream.
2. If you want to add some sweet liqueur do so now – or add the vanilla flavouring. Then add the chocolate chips and candied citrus peel.
3. Line a small tray or bowl with slices of sponge cake, put the ricotta cream in the middle and top with a layer of sponge cake to seal. Refrigerate for at least an hour.
4. Serve with seasonal fruit and decorate with icing sugar.
Other recipes for cassata suggest layering slices of sponge cake with layers of a ricotta/candied peel/liqueur cream. They say you should end with a layer of sponge, soaking it in liqueur or fresh orange juice. Finally the mixture should be weighted down with a heavy plate, placed in the fridge and cooled for 2-3 hours.
It can then be turned out onto a plate, decorated with more ricotta cream – or with chocolate flakes and candied fruit. It should be served chilled.
Read Convivio Rome’s recipe for Torta della Nonna.
