RECEPIES
Zuppa inglese
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A tasty one that, despite its name, is very Italian.
Zuppa Inglese is a spoon dessert alternating layers of custard and chocolate with typical ferrarese doughnut, soaked in alchermes.
Disputed between Tuscany and Emilia, its origins seems to be connected to the Estense court. This dessert was probably created as a reinterpretation of the English trifle, typically made with fruit, cream and cookies soaked in Sherry.
In Ferrara, cookies were replaced with brazadela, the typical Ferrarese doughnut. Over the centuries, chocolate and custard replaced cream.
The use of Alchermes has its roots in medieval times. Imported from Arab countries, its typical reddish colour derives from use of the cochineal ("al quermez" in Arabic).
InFerrara's recipe
Tradition is not tradition if every family does not have its own recipe. This is ours.
Ingredients
"brazadela" ferrarese - typical doughnut
(find the recipe here)
4 egg yolks
150 gr sugar
50 gr flour
500 ml milk
Grated lemon peel to taste
Bitter cocoa to taste
Alchermes
Procedure
The base of the real zuppa inglese is the brazadela, the typical doughnut of our city.
Once your doughnut is in the oven, you can start preparing the custard.
Beat eggs together with sugar. Then add flour and milk, always stirring carefully to prevent lumps. Then put on a gentle heat always stirring, bring to a simmer and cook for more two minutes.
Now transfer the cream into two separate bowls, adding bitter cocoa to one of the two.
Once cooled, doughnut and creams will be ready to became your dessert!
Cut brazadela into slices about 1 cm high, putting a first layer on the bottom of a baking pan and soaking it with alchermes. Continue alternating cream, brazadela one cocoa cream until the top of the pan, finishing with custard. Let everything rest for at least 3 hours in the fridge, the..enjoy!
