Sicilian Chocolate Ricotta Cake

STEP 1: MAKE THE ORANGE PASTRY CREAM (DO THIS FIRST SO IT CAN CHILL)

Warm the milk with the wide strips of orange zest until hot but not boiling, then take it off the heat and let it infuse for 10 minutes; discard the zest. In a bowl, whisk the egg yolks, sugar and cornstarch to a smooth paste. Whisking constantly, pour in about a third of the warm milk to temper the yolks, then return everything to the pan. Cook over medium heat, whisking, until it thickens and just bubbles — about 2 minutes past first boil to cook out the starch. Off the heat, whisk in the butter, orange juice, optional liqueur and a pinch of salt. Strain through a fine-mesh sieve, press cling film onto the surface, and chill until cold.

STEP 2: MAKE THE CHOCOLATE ALMOND BARK

Toast the sliced almonds in a dry pan until fragrant, then cool. Melt (or briefly temper) the dark chocolate over a bain-marie until smooth, then spread it thin — about 3 mm — on a parchment-lined sheet. Scatter over the toasted almonds and a pinch of flaky sea salt while the chocolate is still wet. Chill until fully set, then snap into rough shards. Tempering or a cold set keeps the bark glossy and crisp rather than dull and soft.

STEP 3: MAKE THE CHOCOLATE RICOTTA CAKE BATTER

Preheat the oven to 325°F (160°C). Line the springform base with parchment and butter the sides. Melt the chopped dark chocolate with the butter over a bain-marie and cool slightly. In a large bowl, beat the egg yolks with half the sugar (75 g) until pale, then beat in the well-drained ricotta, orange zest, vanilla extract and salt until smooth. Fold in the melted chocolate, then the almond flour, sifted all-purpose flour and Dutch-process cocoa powder. In a clean bowl, whip the egg whites with the cream of tartar to soft peaks, add the remaining 75 g sugar in a stream, and whip to soft-medium (not stiff) peaks. Fold the whites into the batter in three additions, keeping it light — overmixing here is what turns the crumb gummy and heavy.

STEP 4: BAKE THE CAKE THROUGH (THE LESSON OF THE EPISODE)

Scrape the batter into the tin and level it. Bake for 45–55 minutes, until the top is set and springs back and a skewer inserted off-centre comes out with only a few moist crumbs — not wet batter. Tent loosely with foil if the top darkens early. This is the exact point where the competition cake came unstuck: an underbaked centre will not hold together on release, so bake it through. Equally, don’t push past a clean-crumb skewer — the named risk on the day was drying it out.

STEP 5: COOL COMPLETELY, THEN RELEASE WITH PATIENCE

Cool the cake in the tin on a rack for 20 minutes, then chill it in the tin for at least an hour (ideally two). A dense ricotta-chocolate cake is fragile when warm and firm once cold — releasing it hot is what breaks it. When thoroughly cold, run a thin knife around the edge and release the springform; the chilled cake will lift away cleanly.

STEP 6: ASSEMBLE AND SERVE

Bring the cake to cool room temperature. Slice, and serve each portion with a generous spoonful or quenelle of the orange pastry cream and a shard or two of chocolate almond bark standing upright for height. A little grated orange zest over the top echoes the citrus in the cream. For the individual-cake finish, bake the batter in six ring moulds or ramekins for 22–28 minutes, then cool and chill before releasing — the pivot that won the challenge.