Cassata Siciliana

Make Ahead and Storage

Refrigerated for 4 days. Do not freeze — the ricotta separates.

Making Cassata Siciliana

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1. Drain the ricotta in a sieve set over a bowl in the fridge for 4 hours.

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2. Whisk the eggs and caster sugar to a thick ribbon, fold in the flour and vanilla, and bake in a lined 24 cm tin at 170°C / 340°F fan / 190°C / 375°F / gas 5 for 25 minutes. Cool and slice into 1 cm sheets.

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3. Sieve the drained ricotta, then beat it with the icing sugar until completely smooth. Fold in the chocolate and candied pumpkin.

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4. Knead the colouring into the marzipan and roll it out to 4 mm on icing sugar. Cut strips to line the sloping sides of a 24 cm cassata tin or cake tin.

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5. Line the tin with cling film, then the marzipan strips, then a layer of sponge across the base.

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6. Stir the water, caster sugar and maraschino together and brush it over the sponge.

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7. Fill with the ricotta mixture, level it, and cover with a final sheet of sponge. Brush again with the soak.

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8. Refrigerate 6 hours, then turn the cassata out onto a plate and peel off the film.

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9. Beat the icing sugar with the lemon juice to a thick pourable glaze and pour it over the top only, letting it run to the marzipan edge.

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10. Arrange the candied fruit over the glaze while it is still wet.

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Related guides: Prep, cook and total time · Pan and tin size.

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A Few Pointers

• Drain the ricotta, then sieve it. Beating alone leaves it grainy.
• Marzipan at 4 mm — thinner cracks, thicker will not bend.
• Glaze it cold, straight from the fridge.

Why the Method Is What It Is

Sheep's ricotta drained for hours and then pushed through a sieve is what makes the filling: whipped ricotta stays grainy no matter how long you beat it, and undrained ricotta weeps into the sponge overnight and turns the whole thing to a puddle. The marzipan lining must be rolled thin enough to bend around the tin without cracking — about four millimetres — and the glaze goes on only when the assembled cassata is cold from the fridge, or it slides straight off.

Serving Ideas

Marsala · Espresso · Sicilian oranges

Quick Answers

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