Schiacciata alla Fiorentina Recipe

Schiacciata alla Fiorentina, Florentine flat cake, is a typical dessert of the Carnival period and realized with simple ingredients. The old version included brewer’s yeast, a double leavening, and the addition of lard. We use orange zest and juice to flavour the Schiacciata and give it a classic colour. Nowadays, in pastry shops, you can find it in two versions: the traditional one, filled with a layer of Custard or Chantilly cream, and decorated with the city’s symbol: the Florentine lily.

SCHIACCIATA ALLA FIORENTINA RECIPE

Preparation time: 1 hour. Rest time: 3 hours in total

Difficulty level: medium

Ingredients for 10 people:

250 gr of flour

250 grams of Manitoba flour

250 gr of fresh milk

150 grams of sugar

150 grams of lard

15 gr of fresh brewer’s yeast

2 eggs

Zest of 2 fresh oranges

A pinch of salt

Icing sugar to decorate

Bitter cocoa to decorate

Preparation:

Mix the two flours well.

Dissolve the brewer’s yeast in the warm milk in a small bowl.

Add 150 grams of flour and mix with the milk to create a batter. Cover with the food film and let rise for one hour. After this time, add about half of the remaining flour and knead until the mixture is homogeneous.

Mix the eggs, sugar, and grated zest of two oranges in a bowl. Add half of the eggs to the dough and mix. Next, add the remaining flour, egg, and salt, and mix everything. Finally, add the softened lard a little at a time. It takes at least 20 minutes to knead the dough well. Then cover it with plastic wrap and let it rise for about an hour.

Grease a pan (about 20x 30 cm) and roll out the dough. Let it rise for an hour. Next, heat the oven to 180° C and cook for 30 minutes. Check that the surface does not darken excessively; in this case, cover it with aluminium foil. Remove from the oven and let it cool.

Once cooled, sprinkle with icing sugar. Next, make the paper template of the Florentine lily, bring it as close as possible to the centre of the flatbread without touching it, and sprinkle it with bitter cocoa.

CUSTARD RECIPE

Ingredients:

80 gr of sugar

4 egg yolks

2 tablespoons of flour

500 ml of milk

1 lemon

Preparation:

In a saucepan with high sides, carefully mix the eggs with the sugar. When the latter has melted, mix the flour a little at a time, then, always stirring, add the warm milk and flavour with the grated lemon peel.

Put the saucepan on the fire and bring it to a boil without ever stopping stirring. Turn off after three minutes of boiling and let cool.