chocolate grandma’s pie – italian custard and hazelnuts tart
Ready in
3h 30 min
Preparation
2h 10 min
Cooking
40 min
Portions
8 Person
Cost
chip
difficulty
easy
à pizza cà crema
Pie with chocolate custard and hazelnuts
“A pizza cà crema”, as it was called in Cilento, this classic cake known today all over the world as: “Grandma’s chocolate pie” and, even if, as many say it is of Tuscan origin but, that I know, the Florentine “Grandma’s pie” is with normal custard and pine nuts. In Cilento it has always been made with chocolate custard, also because, with white custard it was made “A pizza with custard and sour cherries”, “Cake with sour cherries and custard“. Anyway, whatever the origin of this pie, every time I prepare it, I see myself as a child again and often I tell my grandchildren about when the oven was turned on to bake bread, the women took advantage of it to make an excellent baked pasta, gattò potatoes and above all sweets, among many others, grandma’s chocolate pie was a must.
Ingredients
Dough
- 250g flour 00
- 100g sugar
- 1 whole eggs
- 1 organic orange peel
Custard
- 1liter milk
- 200g flour 00
- 200g sugar
- 5 whole eggs
- 60g bitter cocoa
- 1 organic orange peel
Decoration
- 170 g chopped hazelnuts
- 50 g icing sugar
Follow Us
Directions
First we make the shortcrust pastry. On the pastry board, pour the flour and make the fountain*
Put the sugar in the fountain, break the eggs and grate the orange peel over all the flour
Take the butter at room temperature and cut it into small pieces over all the flour
Quickly mix all the ingredients, to ensure that the dough does not overheat with the heat of your hands
Roll up the dough, then, mash it a little
Wrap the dough in a cloth and put it to rest in the fridge for at least 30 minutes
While the shortcrust pastry matures, prepare the cream. In a saucepan, boil the milk with the lemon peel
In the food processor or with a blender, whip the eggs with the sugar
Add the flour by sifting it and making sure that no lumps form
Add the sifted cocoa, making sure that no lumps form
Strain the milk to remove any skin and lemon peel
Mix the two compounds well and pour them into a clean pot
Let the cream thicken over medium heat, always stirring
When the cream is ready, pour it into a bowl and turn it with a whisk so that it becomes pretty soft. Then cover with a damp cloth and let it cool
Now we can assemble our tart.
Roll out the shortcrust pastry to a thickness of 4-5 millimeters and a width such as to cover a 24 centimeter pan
Cover the entire pan with the dough, make it adhere well to the sides and cut what comes out of the edge
Prick the bottom with the tines of the fork
Pour the custard into the pan and level it with a spoon
Now sprinkle all the cream with the chopped hazelnuts and make it adhere well on the cream with the use of a palm of your hand
Turn on the oven at 180°C (350°F), when it has reached temperature, bake the tart, cook for 40 minutes or until it is beautiful golden
When it is cooked, remove it from the oven, let it cool 60 minutes, then, turn it upside down on a round tray, let it cool for another 10 minutes, then turn it over and let it cool
When cold or ready to serve, sprinkle with icing sugar
tips
- If the pastry breaks at the time of use, it means that it is not yet ready, spread it on some sheets of parchment paper, one above and one below and without removing it from the paper, place it in the pan. Then remove the card.
- I recommend that you knead the shortcrust pastry one day before use, so it doesn’t break.
- When you roll out the dough, always flour it in flour at every turn, otherwise it sticks.
- For the tart, always use a light aluminum pan, it will cook better.
Storage
- Grandma’s chocolate pie can be kept for three to four days, always covered by a bell, otherwise it dries in a cool place at room temperature but, if it’s hot, it should be put in the fridge.
Equipments
- Casserole (Pot)
- Wooden ladle
- Kitchen washer
- Rolling pin
- Pastry board
- Grater
- Knife
- Silicone spatula
- Planetary or mixer
- 24cm pan
- Tray
- Colander
- Oven
- Cooker
- Fridge
- Bowls
- Pyrex dish or tureen
- Whip
Note
- *The fountain is the hole that is made in the flour so as not to let the liquid ingredients come out.
