THE AMALFI CASATIELLO: A SPECIAL EASTER DESSERT

On the Amalfi Coast, Easter is celebrated not only through liturgical rites and fascinating processions, but also and above all at the table! Among the typical Easter recipes there is a little-known one, but with a unique look and taste: it is the Amalfi Easter casatiello. Let's discover it together!

by Roberta Cascone

The Easter season on the Amalfi Coast is marked by high-impact religious events and is above all an opportunity for families and friends to get together and share traditional dishes. In addition to the chocolate eggs that children go crazy for and the very popular wheat pastiera, a less famous but equally special dessert is produced on the Coast: it is the Amalfi Easter casatiello. One has to be careful, though! The word casatiello generally refers to a rustic stuffing of hard-boiled eggs, cold cuts and cheese (after all, the term derives precisely from "caso," meaning "cheese"). But in some areas of Campania, a sweet version of casatiello is also popular, consisting of eggs, sugar, lard and icing, decorated with the typical "diavulilli," that is colored sprinkles. Few, however, know the Amalfi variant of the sweet casatiello: let's see how it differs from the classic one and how to make it!

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Photo of the Easter Amalfi Casatiello by aldocinque https://agerola.wordpress.com

The Easter dessert of Amalfi

In the Neapolitan region, the sweet casatiello consists of a well-leavened sponge cake base covered with frosting and colored sprinkles. The one from Amalfi, on the other hand, already looks completely different to the eye, since it is flattened; it also does not contain sourdough and the icing that covers it is enriched with the aroma of Sfusato Amalfitano, that is, the lemon typical of these areas. Moreover, the top is decorated with colored eggs, candies, meringues or sugar sheep, which children enjoy peeling off. Since it does not have to rise for long it is quick to make: here is the recipe!

Ingredients

Ingredients for the cake base:

100 g butter
200 g sugar
2 eggs
300 g 00 flour
1 sachet of yeast
1 sachet of vanilin
juice of one orange
1 ampoule of orange blossom

Ingredients for the sugar icing:

1 egg white
170 g powdered sugar
lemon juice to taste

Method

In a large bowl, slowly add the sugar to the butter and mix. Add one egg at a time and continue working the mixture with a spoon. Once the mixture is well blended, add the flour a little at a time and stir until the lumps disappear. After that, pour the orange juice and orange blossom ampoule into the mixture, and finally the baking powder and vanillin. The base mixture should be semi-liquid: at this point, line a hinged mold with baking paper and pour it inside. Level the mixture and bake it in a ventilated oven at 180° for 30 minutes.

While the base is cooling, prepare the frosting. In a bowl place an egg white and beat it until stiff with the lemon juice. After that, gradually add the powdered sugar and mix the mixture with a beater until the frosting is lump-free. Finally, coat the base with icing and add Easter decorations as desired.

Enjoy your casatiello amalfitano!

The Casatiello and the Pansa pastry shop in Amalfi. Courtesy of https://www.amalfinews.it/

The sweet casatiello amalfitano is the signature dish of the historic Pansa pastry shop, located right in front of the Amalfi cathedral. If you spend your Easter vacations in Amalfi, be sure to try it!