CASSATA

Eating your way through Italy is like eating your way through a series of small countries. Each region has its specialties and guards them jealously. Rarely will you find a Sicilian cassata, one of this island region’s best-known desserts, served in other parts of the country. If you want cassata, go to Sicily. But if it’s Panforte, a wonderfully rich holiday fruitcake, you’re after, that will mean a visit to Siena, where the Tuscan sweet has been a Christmas specialty for centuries. Except for Italy’s larger, more cosmopolitan cities such as Rome or Milan, it’s unlikely these distinctive foods will be found outside their regional borders.

Since the holiday period is one in which sweets play an important role, this is a good time to share a collection of recipes for Italian desserts that will fit nicely into seasonal menus. The recipes are based on desserts that were served to a group of food editors traveling throughout Italy earlier this year under the able tutelage of Giuliano Bugialli, a Florentine cooking teacher and award-winning cookbook author who is well known in this country.

Our tour began in Sicily, where, in Marsala, we sampled our first cassata. It was a memorable experience. Made of spongecake sprinkled with sweet wine and filled with a creamy ricotta cheese mixture, cassatas are topped with colorful candied fruits arranged in stylistic designs. There are as many recipes for cassata as there are Sicilians, probably, but we adapted several recipes from a Sicilian cookbook, “Sicilia e le Isole in Bocca,” and Maria Lo Pinto’s “The Art of Regional Italian Cooking” with great success. The chocolate cassata recipe was shared by fellow traveler and Boston caterer, June Gosule.

The Torta di Ricotta recipe came from Luciano Parolari, the creative chef at the beautiful resort hotel Villa d’Este on Lake Como in the Lombardy region. Jean Govoni Salvadore, longtime public relations director for the hotel, hopes to have an updated version of her original cookbook, “Cooking Ideas from Villa d’Este,” off the presses soon. If it’s anything like her first effort, it will be a worthwhile addition to any cookbook collection.

The Panforte and Panettone recipes are from Giuliano Bugialli’s “Classic Techniques of Italian Cooking” (Simon & Schuster: $19.95). The confectioner’s wafer paper called for in the Panforte recipe is a tissue thin sheet of edible paper that is available in some specialty bakery supply shops. It may be difficult to find, but the Panforte, while a little less authentic, will taste just as good without it. SICILIAN CASSATA

Spongecake

3 tablespoons Marsala

1 pound ricotta cheese, sieved

1/2 cup sugar

Dash vanilla

1 1/2 ounces finely chopped semisweet chocolate

Assorted candied fruit (cherries, pineapple, citron, lemon and orange peel)

Almond Icing

Slice Spongecake horizontally into 3 layers. Sprinkle cut side of each layer with 1 tablespoon Marsala. Set aside.

Blend ricotta, sugar, vanilla, chocolate and 1/8 pound finely chopped candied fruit until well mixed. Place bottom cake layer, cut side up, on platter. Spread half of filling over cake layer, smoothing top evenly. Cover with second cake layer, pressing firmly. Spread remaining filling over second layer, smoothing top evenly. Add top cake layer, cut side down, pressing lightly but firmly. Cover and refrigerate several hours or until thoroughly chilled.

When cake is thoroughly chilled, spread top and sides with Almond Icing, smoothing icing evenly. Arrange large pieces candied fruit over top in attractive design. Chill until ready to serve. Makes 12 to 14 servings.

Spongecake

2 eggs

1 cup sugar

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

1/2 teaspoon almond extract

1 tablespoon butter, melted

1/2 cup hot milk

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 cup flour

Beat eggs. Beat in sugar, salt, vanilla and almond extract. Combine melted butter with hot milk and beat into egg mixture. Sift baking powder and flour together and beat into milk and egg mixture.

Pour quickly into 9-inch round baking pan and bake at 350 degrees 30 minutes or until cake shrinks from sides of pan. Invert pan on wire rack to cool. Remove cake from pan.

Almond Icing

4 cups sifted powdered sugar

1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon amaretto

3 tablespoons water, about

Blend powdered sugar, amaretto and enough water to make smooth, spreadable consistency.

SICILIAN CASSATA II

1 pound ricotta cheese

2 tablespoons milk

1/4 cup sugar

2 tablespoons orange-blossom honey or mild honey

1 (1-ounce) square bitter chocolate, chopped

2 tablespoons diced candied citron

1 1/2 teaspoons almond extract

Spongecake

Almond Icing

Assorted candied fruit (cherries, pineapple, citron, lemon and orange peel)

Combine ricotta, milk, sugar and honey and rub through sieve. Beat until smooth. Add chocolate, citron and almond extract and blend well.

Slice Spongecake horizontally into 2 layers. Spread ricotta mixture between layers and refrigerate 2 hours. Place on platter and spread top and sides with Almond Icing. Arrange large pieces candied fruit in attractive design over top of cake. Chill until ready to serve. Makes about 12 to 14 servings.

JUNE’S QUICK CASSATA

1 (16-ounce) frozen all butter poundcake, thawed

1/4 cup orange curacao

2 cups ricotta cheese

1/2 cup powdered sugar

1/2 cup grated semisweet chocolate

Chocolate Icing

Slice poundcake lengthwise into thirds. Sprinkle cut side of each layer with curacao. Set aside.

Combine ricotta, powdered sugar and chocolate. Spread half of mixture on bottom layer of cake. Cover with center layer. Spread with remaining half of mixture. Cover with top layer. Cover and refrigerate overnight.

Uncover cake and spread top and sides with Chocolate Icing. Makes 12 servings.

Chocolate Icing

1 cup semisweet chocolate pieces

1/4 cup sour cream

Dash salt

Melt chocolate and sour cream together over low heat, stirring occasionally. Stir in salt.

TORTA DI RICOTTA

(Ricotta Cheese Cake)

3 eggs, separated

3/4 cup sugar

1/4 cup flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

Peel of 1/2 lemon, grated

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1 pound cottage cheese

Crust

Combine egg yolks, sugar, flour, salt, lemon peel and juice and cottage cheese in blender container. Blend until smooth. Beat egg whites until stiff but not dry. Fold beaten whites gently into cheese mixture. Pour into Crust.

Bake at 325 degrees 1 hour. Turn off oven, leaving cake inside for additional 30 minutes. Remove and cool. Makes 8 to 10 servings.

Note: Combination of ricotta cheese, yogurt and cream cheese may be substituted for cottage cheese, if desired.

Crust

2 cups macadamia nuts

1/4 cup flour

1/4 cup sugar

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 tablespoon butter or margarine, softened

Finely grind macadamia nuts. Combine with flour, sugar, cinnamon and butter. Press mixture evenly against bottom and sides of 8- or 9-inch springform pan. Chill 30 minutes.

Bake at 350 degrees 12 to 15 minutes or until golden. Cool.

PANFORTE

1 3/4 cups blanched almonds, finely chopped

1 cup blanched walnuts, finely chopped

1/2 cup hazelnuts, coarsely chopped

3/4 cup dried figs, coarsely chopped

3/4 cup candied citron or candied citrus peel, cut into 1/2-inch cubes

1 tablespoon sweetened cocoa powder

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Dash white pepper

Dash ground mace

2/3 cup honey

1/3 cup granulated sugar

Confectioner’s edible wafer papers

2 tablespoons powdered sugar

Combine almonds, walnuts, hazelnuts, figs and citron in large bowl. Add cocoa powder, 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon, white pepper and mace. Mix with wooden spoon until all ingredients are well blended.

Pour honey into copper or stainless steel saucepan and place over medium heat. Add granulated sugar and stir until honey is completely melted and sugar incorporated. Do not allow mixture to boil.

Remove from heat and add to mixture in bowl. Mix gently until well blended. Line bottom and sides of 10-inch layer cake pan with removable bottom with confectioners’ wafer paper. Press in mixture, smoothing out evenly. Cover with another layer wafers. Bake at 375 degrees 25 to 30 minutes. Remove from oven and cool in pan about 10 minutes.

Remove sides and bottom of pan and transfer Panforte to rack to cool completely, about 8 hours. Wrap tightly in foil. Before serving, sprinkle with remaining cinnamon and powdered sugar. Makes 12 servings.

Note: Confectioner’s edible wafer papers can be found in European candy or specialty bakery supply stores.

PANETTONE

(Christmas Bread)

1/2 cup raisins

2 cups milk, heated to 105 to 110 degrees

7 tablespoons unsalted butter

5 cups unbleached flour, about

6 cakes compressed yeast

6 extra large egg yolks

1/2 cup sugar

Dash salt

3/4 cup diced candied citron or candied citrus peel

1/3 cup diced candied orange peel

Peel of 1 lemon, grated

Soak raisins in 1 cup lukewarm milk until plump, about 30 minutes. Drain raisins well and reserve milk for other use. Melt 6 tablespoons butter in top of double boiler and set aside to cool.

Mound flour on pastry board and make well in center.

Dissolve yeast in remaining 1 cup milk. Place 5 egg yolks, sugar, salt and yeast in well. Stir with wooden spoon. Add melted butter, a little at a time, gradually incorporating flour. When most of flour has been incorporated, add raisins, citron, orange peel and grated lemon peel.

Knead dough gently 10 minutes, then shape into ball. Line 8-inch springform or round deep cake pan with wax paper or foil band about 9 inches high. Sprinkle lightly with flour and place dough in pan. Cover with dish towel. Let rise in warm place away from drafts until doubled in size.

When dough has risen, beat remaining yolk and brush top of dough with it. Cut cross into top, place remaining tablespoon butter in center and bake at 400 degrees 50 to 60 minutes or until bread tests done. (Do not open oven door for first 25 minutes of baking time.)

Remove from oven and let stand about 10 minutes. Remove from pan and cool completely on rack. (Wax paper may stick. If so, let Panettone cool completely before removing.) Makes 12 to 16 servings.