Tuesday, November 7, 2023

Gattò aretino



Did you know that salami can also be… sweet? 😄

We are talking about the Gattò Aretino, a typical Tuscan delicacy that, as you can imagine, owes its name to the French word “gateaux”.
It is a very easy dessert. The secrets for the perfect Gattò are:
✅use good quality eggs and chocolate
⭐️know how to make an excellent custard
❤️prepare it thinking of someone special

Typical sweet of Arezzo, Gattò aretino has a name which, although slightly crippled, reveals the ancient French origins ("gateau" which literally stands for cake). On the genesis of this tasty dish there are different schools of thought, one of them considers that it is born in Umbria, where it is usually called "King Salami" and has subsequently spread to Arezzo, in Tuscany. Known throughout Tuscany like salami, it is a soft dough biscuit, much like the sponge that is soaked in liqueur Alchermes, and then stuffed with chocolate or cream. The Gattò was usually prepared by families of the Aretino at ceremonies, parties or special occasions. Today it has become a delicacy typical of this land easily available in all bakeries in the province.

It is the holiday dessert of the people of Arezzo, a bit like the Zuppa inglese, from which it does not differ much in taste. It consists of a biscuit dough base, very similar to sponge cake, which is baked briefly in the oven then soaked with Alchermes, sprinkled with cream and finally rolled. After a few hours in the fridge and well sprinkled with powdered sugar, it is eaten in slices.

Ingredients

For the sponge cake (dose for standard 30X40 oven trays)
4 eggs (white until stiff)
180 g granulated sugar
80 g flour
40 g starch
1 pinch of salt
1 lemon (zest)

For the creams
6 egg yolks
140 g sugar
20 g starch
25 g cornstarch
400 ml fresh whole milk
100 ml fresh cream
vanilla
80 g dark chocolate

For the syrup
1 small glass of alchermes
50 ml water
1 tbsp sugar
30 g rum
1 lemon (peel)
For the decoration
powdered sugar
1 tbsp cocoa powder

Alchermes
It is made through the maceration in alcohol of essences and spices. Alchermes is largely appreciated as liqueur and it is also widely used in pastry. It  is a type of Italian liqueur (especially in Tuscany, Emilia-Romagna, and Sicily) prepared by infusing neutral spirits with sugar, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, and vanilla, and other herbs and flavoring agents. Its most striking characteristic is its scarlet color, obtained by the addition of Kermes, a small scale insect from which the drink derives its name. Several proprietary variants are commercially available, where the coloring agent is a coal tar-derived dye such as E124 or E126, with alcoholic contents ranging from 21 to 32%. Its chief use is in coloring pastry, although a quick dessert is sometimes made by adding it to custard cream and sugar. In the Italian pudding zuppa inglese, sponge cake or ladyfingers soaked in this liqueur are a major ingredient.

Preparation

Prepare the sponge cake
Separate the yolks from the whites and pour 1 pinch of salt and 50 g of sugar from the total dose into the egg whites. Then whip until they are white, shiny and firm. Place in the refrigerator Whip the egg yolks with the sugar until they become light. Add the lemon zest or herbs, then turn off the whipper and start slowly mixing the sifted flours with a spatula. Finish by adding the egg whites until stiff, trying not to disassemble the dough. 

To create the decoration, you will have to take a couple of tablespoons of dough and put them in a separate bowl. Dissolve a tablespoon of unsweetened cocoa powder with a drop of milk and pour it into the part of the dough that you have taken. Mix well to obtain a brown mixture. Place the baking paper on the baking tray. Place the brown mixture in a parchment paper croissant (you can find many tutorials on the internet to make it) or in a pastry bag with a small hole. Start drawing the patterns you like on the parchment paper, using the piping bag (leaves, filaments, geometric shapes). Once you have created your decoration, place in a preheated oven at 200°C for about 1 minute, until the decoration begins to dry on the surface. Remove the pan from the oven and cover with the remaining dough, making sure to level the heights well. Bake at 200°C for about 15 minutes. Remove from the mold and place the base on a slightly damp cloth, peel off the parchment paper slowly and paying attention to the decoration. Turn it upside down so that the decoration is visible and let it cool rolled up in the tea towel.

Prepare the cream
Boil the milk and cream with the herbs. In the meantime, mix the egg yolks, sugar and starches in a saucepan (without whipping). When the milk is hot, pour it over the egg mixture, put on a low heat and start stirring until the cream thickens. Divide the cream into two parts (one a little more abundant than the other) and in the poorer one, add the chocolate in small pieces, stirring until it is completely melted. At this point, let it cool by putting cling film in contact with the surface.

Prepare the syrup
Boil the water with the sugar and lemon zest in a saucepan. Boil until the syrup has taken on a nice scent and the water has receded slightly. Turn off the heat and add the rum.

Assemble the cake
Place the layer of sponge cake on a sheet (or two joined sheets) of plastic wrap that will help you roll up. Wet the sponge cake well with alchermes and the rum syrup. Once cold, arrange the creams, each on a half, dividing the shorter side of the sponge cake in two. Roll the sponge cake from the longest side, tightening well with plastic wrap. Form a tight sausage, close the ends and chill in the refrigerator. The Arezzo gattò can also be prepared a couple of days in advance and left in the refrigerator. Remove from the fridge one hour before serving. Remove the foil, cut off the ends and trim well and sprinkle with powdered sugar.  Use a sharp knife to cut the slices. Enjoy your meal!


 

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