Italian Christmas cake Certosino di Bologna

6 servings

120 minutes

The Italian Christmas cake Certosino di Bologna is a true embodiment of Bologna's festive traditions. Its history dates back to the Middle Ages when Carthusian monks prepared this spice and nut-rich dessert for Christmas. The cake has a deep, warm flavor thanks to the combination of almonds, pine nuts, chocolate, and fruits soaked in amaretto. The aroma of cinnamon and fennel gives it a distinctive, slightly spicy note. Its texture is dense and moist, making it an ideal complement to a cup of strong espresso or a glass of dessert wine. This cake symbolizes celebration and coziness and is traditionally prepared in advance so that its flavor becomes even richer over time.

Energy value per serving

• Calories: 842.7
• Proteins: 13.3g
• Fats: 28.9g
• Carbohydrates: 135.4g

Ingredients

• Wheat flour: 400 g
• Baking powder: 1 tbsp
• Apple: 3 pc
• Grape seed oil: 50 ml
• Agave syrup: 100 ml
• Cane sugar: 100 g
• Raisin: 150 g
• Almond: 100 g
• Pine nuts: 50 g
• Chocolate: 100 g
• Candied orange peel: 120 g
• Cinnamon: 2 tsp
• Fennel: 1 tsp

Cooking steps

1. First, soak the raisins in amaretto and prepare the orange candied peel. For this, peel the white part off the orange peel, cut it into slices, and simmer in sugar syrup until soft. Then cool it down. Candied peel can be bought ready-made in the store if you don't want to deal with it.

   Required ingredients:

   • Raisin: 150 g
   • Candied orange peel: 120 g

2. Chop the chocolate into pieces the size of raisins. Also chop the almonds coarsely.

   Required ingredients:

   • Chocolate: 100 g
   • Almond: 100 g

3. We mix the flour with baking powder.

   Required ingredients:

   • Wheat flour: 400 g
   • Baking powder: 1 tablespoon

4. We'll peel the apples, grate them on a coarse grater, and add them to the flour. We'll mix everything.

   Required ingredients:

   • Apple: 3 pieces

5. Heat the agave syrup in a small saucepan (do not bring to a boil!), add sugar and dissolve completely.

   Required ingredients:

   • Agave syrup: 100 ml
   • Cane sugar: 100 g

6. Then we add oil and spices to the syrup, mix well, and add it to the flour. I like grape seed oil because it doesn't have a strong aroma that interferes with the spices' scent. Any other vegetable oil with a mild aroma can be used.

   Required ingredients:

   • Grape seed oil: 50 ml
   • Cinnamon: 2 teaspoons
   • Fennel: 1 teaspoon

7. We will mix everything thoroughly again until homogeneous, then add crushed chocolate, nuts, raisins, and candied fruits, and mix once more.

   Required ingredients:

   • Chocolate: 100 g
   • Almond: 100 g
   • Raisin: 150 g
   • Candied orange peel: 120 g

8. Transfer the mixture to a mold and bake for one and a half hours at 170 degrees — check the readiness of the cake with a wooden stick or toothpick; it should be dry inside. But it's very important not to overbake! Catch the moment when it has just started to dry inside.