Torta Tenerina: this creamy Italian torte is rich, moist and chocolatey

This rich cake appeals especially to chocolate lovers. With a dollop of cream, it will have everybody asking for more.

Giuseppe Dell‘Anno’s Torta Tenerina. Picture: Matt Russell

Giuseppe Dell’anno

2 min read

12:00AMFebruary 04, 2023

The Weekend Australian Magazine

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Tenerina means ‘small and tender’ and it is a very good description of the texture of this cake. It does not call for any raising agent, so the result is a shallow, dense but moist, very chocolatey cake. It originates from Ferrara, in Emilia Romagna, where it is also known as tacolenta (sticky) because of its peculiar, almost creamy core. The key to a good tenerina is the baking time: too long and it will dry out, too short and it might retain a raw core. I test the bake by monitoring the skin: as soon as this turns dull and crispy, the cake is done.

A springform tin is ideal for baking a tenerina as the structure is too delicate to turn out of a standard tin. The texture is very rich and exclusively for chocolate lovers, but everybody will love it with whipped cream or vanilla ice cream. I like to decorate the top with chocolate truffles, but this is entirely optional.

Torta Tenerina

Select a 23cm springform cake tin for this recipe. Set the shelf in the middle of the oven and preheat it to 180C. Grease the tin and line the bottom with baking paper. Melt the chocolate and butter in a metal bowl over gently simmering water, ensuring that the bottom of the bowl does not touch the water. Stir with a silicone spatula until homogeneous and set aside to cool.

Giuseppe's Italian Bakes: Over 60 Classic Cakes, Desserts and Savoury Bakes by Giuseppe Dell'Anno. Picture: Matt Russell

Beat the egg whites with the salt using a handheld electric whisk until foamy. Gradually add half the sugar and keep beating to make a stiff meringue. Do not over-beat the whites or it will be more difficult to incorporate them into the batter: the meringue should form stiff, shiny peaks but not look dry and clumpy. Set the meringue aside and, in another bowl, use the whisk to beat the egg yolks with the remaining 70g (1/3 cup) sugar until pale and fluffy.

Sift the flour into the yolk and sugar mixture and keep whisking at minimum speed until smooth. Pour in the chocolate and butter, then add the milk and whisk again until fully combined. Gently fold the meringue into the chocolate batter in 3 stages with a silicone spatula. Pour into the prepared tin and bake for 20-22 minutes until the skin looks dull and crispy.

Giuseppe Dell'Anno. Picture: Matt Russell

Leave to cool in the tin for 10 minutes, then remove the ring and transfer the cake to a cooling rack to cool completely. Once cool, dust it with cocoa powder, then coat two thirds of the top with a generous layer of icing sugar. Place the truffles (if using) across the boundary between the cocoa and sugar. Store under a cake dome for up to 3-4 days.

Serves up to 12

This is an edited extract from Giuseppe’s Italian Bakes: Over 60 Classic Cakes, Desserts and Savoury Bakes by Giuseppe Dell’Anno (Hardie Grant, $39.99). Photography: Matt Russell