{"id":34821,"date":"2022-09-30T16:19:52","date_gmt":"2022-09-30T14:19:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.tortelliniandco.com\/?p=34821"},"modified":"2023-09-14T18:35:47","modified_gmt":"2023-09-14T16:35:47","slug":"plum-cake-of-bologna-recipe","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.tortelliniandco.com\/en\/plum-cake-of-bologna-recipe\/","title":{"rendered":"Plum cake of the Bolognese Apennines recipe"},"content":{"rendered":"

The plum cake of the Bolognese Apennines is part of the culinary tradition of my land and is a dessert with an old fashioned flavor.<\/p>\n

\"Plum<\/p>\n

On the border<\/strong><\/h5>\n

I was born on the border between Emilia and Romagna.
\nPrecisely in Imola, Romagna cuisine and culture in Emilia territory. Father’s family, which came on the border between Romagna and Tuscany, adds other colors, flavors, and accents to a varied picture.<\/p>\n

What about me? To which territory do I belong?
\nTo Imola and Romagna by birth, roots, family, and where I worked for a long time, or to Bologna and then to Emilia for university studies, again work, home, and habits.<\/p>\n

A suspended life, often accompanied by the impression of belonging to every place and then nowhere.<\/p>\n

You might object that having chosen the name Tortellini for the blog<\/strong>, a pasta typical of Bologna and Emilia, I have already answered my question.<\/p>\n

I have not. At home, tortellini were the minestra of Christmas lunch<\/a> and, consequently, the dish with the highest level of emotion. The most iconic one, but not the most representative. But the other days, I ate passatelli<\/a>, cappelletti, and strozzapreti<\/a> (typical pastas of Romagna).<\/p>\n

The flavors of my region<\/strong><\/h5>\n

I have to confess.
\nWhen I was young, I was ashamed that I was born in the province and felt I was from Emilia, not Romagna.
\nAs soon as I could, I ran away.<\/p>\n

Once I arrived in Bologna among work, new friends, and classes at the University, I breathed. I finally was where I thought I wanted to be.<\/p>\n

A few decades later, I recovered the identity I had mortified and rejected.
\nToday I am proud to be born in a little village on the border of two different areas.
\nIt gave me a naivet\u00e9 and a hunger for life that, recently, I realized how valuable they were and still are.<\/p>\n

Today I cook traditional recipes from Romagna and Emilia, feeling they belong to me.
\nAnd that, at the same way, the flavors I have encountered along life’s journey belong to me.<\/p>\n

Today I cook to remind myself who I am and where I come from.
\nAnd since I have already walked for a long time, my table is full of flavors.
\nBut I do not forget the struggle to reach this new awareness<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"Plum<\/p>\n

The plum cake of the Bolognese Apennines<\/strong><\/h5>\n

It is an early November morning and foggy.
\nI’m at Pietracolora, a village of about two hundred souls in the Bolognese Apennines.
\nIn the little kitchen, the fireplace flame crackles.
\nOn the table, to welcome us, coffee pot and cake.<\/p>\n

The outer shell of the cake is a short bread covered with powdered sugar.<\/p>\n

My hostess cuts some slices of cake. In the air, there is the scent of wood, and that coffee, when something new creeps into the room.
\nIt is chocolate, but suddenly another fresher and fruitier one arrives.<\/p>\n

In front of me, on an old, chipped dessert plate, is a slice of cake that I have never seen or tasted: the Apennine plum cake.<\/p>\n

It is a traditional Bolognese peasant dessert, so there is no shortage of amaretti biscuits, which in the Bologna area, are homely. Crumbled macaroons, finely chopped almonds, and cocoa are the filling that covers the plums. Tasting my slice, I understand why you call it plum cake and not cocoa and amaretti dessert, although their distinct flavors.<\/p>\n

To make, to taste, to share. Even give it as a gift.<\/p>\n

Buona cucina, Monica<\/p>\n

Keep in Touch<\/b><\/h5>\n