La Torta della Nonna represents a classic of Italian tradition and in particular of Tuscan cuisine. Although the birth of the recipe is disputed between Tuscany, Liguria and Emilia Romagna, in fact, it is said that the origin of this Italian delicacy is due to a Florentine chef who invented this recipe in the early 1900s as if to satisfy his customers and propose new tastes.

The origin of this dessert is therefore not a home-made one and its name is probably due to its genuineness and simplicity that recalls a cuisine rich in flavours, that of “grandmother”.

Here is the recipe of Torta della Nonna proposed by tu.cuoche.

Recipe of Torta della Nonna

Ingredients

For the shortcrust pastry

• 300 gr of flour 00
• 150 gr of sugar
• 150 gr of cold butter
• 1 egg and 1 yolk
• 5 gr of yeast
• 1 pinch of salt
• lemon zest

For the custard cream

• 750ml of milk
• lemon peel
• 4 yolks
• 6 tablespoons of sugar
• 6 tablespoons of flour
• 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract

To decorate

• 20 gr of pine nuts
• 20 gr of peeled almonds
• icing sugar at taste

Procedure

For the shortcrust pastry put the flour in a bowl with sugar, lemon rind, salt and yeast; mix everything and add the cold butter cut into cubes, crushing it with a fork until you get a sandy mixture.

Then add one egg and one yolk and knead everything together to form a cake.

Put the shortcrust pastry in the fridge to rest for 30 minutes, dividing it into two parts: one must be about two thirds of the other. For the cream, pour the milk with a little lemon zest and vanilla extract into a pot and put it on the heat.

Meanwhile, in a bowl, mix 4 egg yolks with a whisk, then add the sugar and stir, finally, add the flour.

Keep stirring to avoid lumps.

When the milk is hot, remove the lemon peels and add the two compounds stirring without stopping for about five minutes so that the cream thickens. After this time, pour the cream into a bowl and cover it with transparent film (make sure the film touch completely the dough).

Take two thirds of the pastry for the base and make a disc. Place it in the cake tin and remove the excess shortbread, then pierce the base with the tines of a fork and pour the custard.

Roll out the rest of the shortbread, making a disc and place it on the cake sealing it with the tines of a fork.

Then brush the surface with milk to make it sticky and distribute the pine nuts and almonds cut into slices on the cake, then make small holes scattered on the upper pastry with a toothpick.

Bake it in a hot static oven at 180° for 40 minutes, in the lower part of the oven. Once cooked, let it cool completely and decorate with icing sugar.

Looking for other traditional Tuscan recipes? In our blog you can find the recipes of cantucci, ribollita, pappa al pomodoro and many other Italian regional specialties!