This is a Christmas cake only found in Mantua. Anello di Monaco originated in the late 19th century when the Swiss artisan baker Samson Putcher settled in Mantua and opened a shop selling cakes and desserts traditionally heavily influenced by the confectionary schools of Switzerland, Austria and Central Europe. This led to the arrival of delicious baked products with strange names - Gateau Helvetia, Krapfen, Sachertorte and Kugelhupf - that can still be found today. However, it was the last, a sweet bread of Austrian origin, that came to be renamed the Anello di Monaco. It looks a little like panettone, with a hole in the middle about as wide as a Bordolese bottle. The original name came from kugelhupf, the name of the mould used to make the cake. Internally, the cake has layers of filling, alternating hazelnuts, almonds, sugar and Marsala (in some versions, chocolate or chestnut cream). The taste and aroma are clearly a mix of hazelnuts, almonds and butter, and the white icing on top seems to imitate snow-capped mountains.
Ingredients for 6-8 portions
For the dough
500g white flour
1 pinch salt
70g yeast
1 cup lukewarm milk
4 eggs
lemon rind
140g
1.5 tbsp. sugar
For the filling
250g shelled walnuts
150g sugar
10 tbsp. water
Variations for the filling
a) 100g walnuts, 100g sugar, 4 tbsp. cream (liquid)
b) 100g walnuts, 50g raisins (chopped)
Method
Dissolve the yeast in the lukewarm milk and add a teaspoon of sugar and a tablespoon of flour. Knead to a dough and leave to rise in a warm room. Prepare the filling, add the sugar to the water and bring to the boil. Reduce and then stir in the finely chopped hazelnuts and almonds. When the mixture has cooled, add the two beaten egg whites. Add the remaining flour and sugar to the mixture and, in succession, the grated lemon rind, the butter, the 2 whole eggs, the 2 egg yolks and a pinch of salt. Knead carefully until you have a uniform dough. Leave to rise and then place the dough on a floured pastry board and shape it into a 2cm high rectangle. Spread the filling on top, roll it up and then place it in a buttered and floured baking tin. Place in a cold oven and then bake for 40 minutes at 220°C. Once baked, add icing made by thickening the icing sugar over heat with a little bit of water.