Recipe: Italian Love Cake, Sicilian Cake with Chocolate Filling, and Sponge Cake with Raspberry and Mascarpone Cream

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ITALIAN LOVE CAKE
Board: Daily Recipe Swap at Recipelink.com
MSG ID: 3135193

FOR THE CAKE:
1 box chocolate cake mix (I use the cake mix with pudding type)
plus ingredients to prepare cake mix (oil, water, eggs)
FOR THE TOPPING:
2 pounds ricotta cheese
4 eggs
3/4 cup sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
FOR THE ICING:
1 cup cold milk
1 small box chocolate INSTANT pudding
1/4 cup powdered sugar
1 (8-oz.) container Cool Whip, thawed

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Prepare mix according to pkg. directions and pour into a prepared 13x9-inch baking pan.

Beat together the ricotta, eggs, sugar, and vanilla until well mixed. Spoon onto cake batter in pan and spread with a knife.

Bake at 350 F. for 60 minutes. As cake bakes, cheese filling sinks to bottom.

TO PREPARE THE ICING:
Beat together the milk, pudding, and powdered sugar. Fold in Cool Whip and spread on cooled cake.

Source: Mary Ellen (MMEBM'S)

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SICILIAN CAKE WITH CHOCOLATE FILLING
(CASSATA ALLA SICILIANA)

A delightful cake recipe is a specialty of Sicily. It is filled with a delicious ricotta cheese filling.

1 fresh Pan di Spagna (or substitute pound cake)
1 pound ricotta cheese
2 Tbsp heavy cream
1/4 cup sugar
3 Tbsp orange flavored liqueur
3 Tbsp candied fruit, chopped
3 ounces semisweet chocolate, grated
confectioners sugar for topping

Cut the Pan di Spagna horizontally into 4 even layers.

With a mixer, beat the ricotta cheese until it is smooth. Mix in the cream, sugar, grated chocolate, and orange liqueur. With a spatula fold in the candied fruit.

Place the bottom layer of cake on a flan pan or dish and spread it with 1/3 of the ricotta-chocolate mixture. Place another layer of cake on top of the filling, keeping the sides and ends even.

Spread with 1/3 of the ricotta-chocolate filling. Repeat with another layer of cake and filling. Top with a plain layer of cake on top. Gently press the cake together. Chill for at least 2 hours before serving.

Before serving sprinkle confectioners sugar over the top.

Note: To simplify the construction process, bake the cake in a springform pan. When preparing the layers place them in the clean springform pan. After chilling you can remove the springform frame.

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SPONGE CAKE WITH RASPBERRY AND MASCARPONE CREAM

You could say that in these days of frantic waistline watching, cakes are a bit of a vanished species, but not altogether, I hope, because everyone should have a day off from being disciplined now and then - a real, proper home-made sponge cake is just the thing for a sunny weekend, for serving with tea in the garden. Here, the lightest of sponges filled with summer fruits makes a delicious teatime treat.

FOR THE SPONGE:
6 oz (175 g) self-raising flour
1 rounded teaspoon baking powder
3 large eggs
6 oz (175 g) caster sugar
6 oz (175 g) butter, very soft at room temperature
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
FOR THE FILLING:
8 oz (225 g) raspberries
3-4 tablespoons soft set raspberry jam
1 x 250 g tub mascarpone
1 x 200 ml tub fromage frais
1 level tablespoon caster sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
To serve:
a little icing sugar

Preheat the oven to gas mark 3, 325 F (170 C).

You will also need two 8 inch (20 cm) 11/2 inch (4 cm) deep sponge tins, lightly greased and lined with silicone paper (baking parchment).

Take a very large mixing bowl. Measure the flour and baking powder into a sieve and sift into a bowl, holding the sieve quite high to give the flour a good airing as it goes down.

Now all you do is simply add all the other sponge ingredients to the bowl and, provided the butter is really soft, you just go in with an electric hand whisk and whisk everything together until you have a smooth, well-combined mixture. This will take 1 minute but, if you don't have an electric hand whisk, you can use a wooden spoon with a bit more effort. What you now end up with is a mixture that drops easily off a spoon when you give it a tap on the side of the bowl. If it does seem a little too stiff, add 1-2 tablespoons of tap water and mix again.

Now divide the mixture between the two tins, level it out and place on the centre shelf of the oven. It will take 30-35 minutes to cook - don't open the oven door until 30 minutes have elapsed. To test if they are cooked or not, touch the centre lightly with your little finger; if it leaves no impression and springs back, the sponge is cooked.

Next, remove them from the oven then wait for about 5 minutes before turning them out on to a wire cooling rack. Carefully peel off the base papers, leave the sponges to get completely cold, then add the filling.

For the filling, combine the mascarpone and fromage frais in a bowl; a balloon whisk will amalgamate them quicker. Add the level tablespoon of sugar and one teaspoon of vanilla extract. Now spread one tablespoon of jam over one of the sponge cakes, follow this with half the cream mixture then scatter the raspberries all over that. Now drizzle the rest of the jam over the raspberries and place the second sponge cake on top. Press very lightly to sandwich everything together, then lightly dust the cake with icing sugar before serving.

This recipe first appeared in Sainsbury's Magazine.