Why You’ll Love This Sbrisolona Recipe
The first time I made sbrisolona, I was honestly hooked. There’s something so satisfying about a dessert that deliberately celebrates a coarse, crumbly texture instead of trying to be perfectly smooth or fluffy. Every bite gives you this amazing contrast between the buttery dough and crunchy almonds.
What I love most about making this? It’s completely hands-on. Forget the electric mixer – your fingers are the best tool here! There’s something so therapeutic about working the cold butter into the dry ingredients with your hands. I find myself making this on days when I need some kitchen therapy. And the smell that fills your kitchen as it bakes? Divine – all toasty almonds and buttery goodness.
I’ve taught this recipe in my twists on Italian classics cooking class, and students always look at me skeptically at first. “That’s it? Just break it apart?” But then they taste it and suddenly everyone gets it. This humble-looking dessert packs so much flavor and such a unique texture that you just can’t get anywhere else.
Do you love Italian desserts? Try my Torta Caprese or this Semifreddo.
Ingredients You’ll Need
- Whole almonds: Don’t skimp here. Toasting them first makes ALL the difference in flavor. I love watching them transform in the oven, becoming more fragrant and developing that deeper flavor that makes this traditional almond cake so special.
- Butter: You’ll need it cold and cubed, not at room temperature like most desserts. This is key for creating those delicious crumbs that give sbrisolona its characteristic texture. The butter should be chilled, just like when making pie crust.
- All-purpose flour: Nothing fancy needed here! This provides structure while letting the almonds shine. I’ve tested this with a good GF flour blend too, and it works beautifully if you need that substitution.
- Stone-ground cornmeal: This might seem unusual in a dessert, but trust me, it’s what gives sbrisolona its special texture. It’s authentic to northern Italy recipes and adds this pleasant grittiness that makes each bite interesting.
- Sugar: I typically use granulated cane sugar, but I’ve played around with maple sugar too. If you’re watching sugar intake, a low-glycemic sweetener like Lakanto can work, though the texture will be slightly different.
- Sea salt or kosher salt: Just a pinch, but don’t skip it! It wakes up all the other flavors.
- Egg yolks: These hold everything together without making the dough cake-like. We want crumbles, not cake!
- Extracts: I use both vanilla and almond. The almond extract really amplifies the nuttiness of the whole almonds. A little goes a long way!
- Orange zest: This brightens everything up! I’ve found orange works beautifully with the almonds, though some classic recipes call for lemon zest instead.
How to Make Sbrisolona
Step 1: Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. Spread the almonds on a baking sheet or pie plate and toast them for about 10-13 minutes. You’ll know they’re done when your kitchen smells amazing and they’re lightly golden. Let them cool completely.
Step 2: Lightly grease a 9-10-inch pie plate or cake pan or the equivalent volume of another baking dish. I used a 7 x 11-inch baking pan.
Step 3: Add 1 cup of your toasted almonds and put them in a food processor with ¼ cup of flour. Pulse until they’re roughly the size of small peas – don’t overdo it! You don’t want almond butter. Transfer this to a large bowl.
Step 4: Now pulse the remaining almonds, but keep these chunkier – larger than peas. You can even just chop these by hand if you prefer. Add them to your bowl with the finer almond mixture.
Step 5: Add the remaining cup of flour, cornmeal, sugar, and salt to your bowl and give everything a good stir to combine.
Step 6: Add the cubed butter to the mixture and, with your hands, rub the butter pieces and flour mixture between your fingers until you achieve a coarse texture. Some butter pieces can be larger than others, but the mixture should not be dry or powdery. It should feel moist.
Step 7: In a small bowl, whisk together your egg yolks, orange zest, and both extracts. Pour this into your almond mixture and continue mixing with your hands until a crumbly dough forms.
Step 8: Transfer this crumbly mixture into your prepared pan and spread it into an even layer. Here’s the important part: do NOT pack it down firmly! Just an even, loose layer.
Step 9: Bake for about 40 minutes until it’s beautifully golden brown. Let it cool completely in the pan. Once cool, break it into irregular pieces for serving!
Recipe Tips and Variations
- No pastry blender? No problem! I actually prefer using my hands for this recipe. There’s something so satisfying about feeling the texture change as you work, and your warm fingers distribute the butter perfectly while keeping those essential crumbles intact.
- Want the true Italian experience? Place the whole sbrisolona on a cutting board in the center of your table and let everyone break off pieces with their hands. In Italy, people often dunk pieces into sweet dessert wine or coffee.
While this sbrisolona recipe is pretty straightforward, I’ve played around with some variations over the years:
- Swap in hazelnuts for some or all of the almonds (equally delicious!)
- Add a teaspoon of crushed fennel seeds for a subtle anise flavor – sounds strange but it’s very Italian and works beautifully
- Bake it in a cast iron skillet instead of a springform pan for an even more rustic presentation and slightly crispier edges
Storage Tips
One thing I love about sbrisolona is that it actually gets better after a day or two as the flavors meld together. Just store it in an airtight container at room temperature for up to a week.
It freezes beautifully, too. I often make a batch, break it into pieces, and freeze half for future cravings. Just layer the pieces with parchment in a freezer container and they’ll keep for at least three months. Let them thaw at room temperature when you’re ready to enjoy.
Recipe FAQs
You might have over-processed the almonds or packed your flour too densely. If needed, add a teaspoon of egg yolk at a time until it feels slightly moist. Remember, crumbly is what we want!
You could for the fine portion, but keep some coarsely chopped almonds too for that authentic texture contrast.
Firm and crumbly, yes – rock-hard, no! If it’s too hard, you may have baked it too long or packed it too tightly in the pan.
This humble Italian treat deserves a spot in your dessert rotation! I used David Lebovitz’s recipe as a starting point and adapted it to make it my own. It’s such a hit that I included it in my all-access June 2024 cooking class, which features my Sheet Pan Chicken Piccata, the perfect dish to pair with this dessert.
More Delicious Dessert Recipes
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Sbrisolona Recipe (Crunchy Italian Almond Cake)
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups almonds
- 1 cup 2 sticks unsalted butter , or plant butter, chilled and cubed + additional for greasing pan
- 1 1/4 cups all-purpose or GF flour blend, divided
- 3/4 cup stone-ground cornmeal
- 3/4 cup granulated cane sugar or maple sugar, you can probably use a low-glycemic dry sweetener like Lakanto
- 1/2 teaspoon sea salt or kosher salt
- 2 large egg yolks
- 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1/2 teaspoon pure almond extract
- zest of one orange
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Place the almonds on a pie plate and bake in the oven for 10-13 minutes or until fragrant and lightly toasted. Cool completely.
- Lightly grease a 9-10-inch pie plate or cake pan or the equivalent volume of another baking dish. I used a 7 x 11-inch baking pan.
- Add 1 cup of the toasted almonds and ¼ cup of the flour to a food processor and pulse until they are the size of small peas. Transfer the mixture into a large bowl.
- Pulse the rest of the almonds in the food processor into pieces larger than peas (or just chop by hand) and transfer to the almond flour mixture in the bowl.
- Add the rest (1 cup) of the flour, cornmeal, sugar, and salt to the large bowl and stir to combine.
- Add the cubed butter to the mixture and with your hands rub the butter pieces and flour mixture between your fingers until you achieve a coarse texture. Some butter pieces can be larger than others, but the mixture should not be dry or powdery. It should feel moist.
- In a small bowl, whisk together egg yolks, orange zest, almond extract, and vanilla extract and then add to the bowl with almond mixture. Continue to combine the mixture with your hands until a dough begins to form.
- Transfer into the prepared pan or baking dish. Spread into an even layer but do not pack it tightly.
- Bake for 40 minutes or until golden brown. Let cool completely before serving it. Break into pieces for serving. Store leftovers in an airtight container for up to one week. The Sbrisolona freezes well too.
Notes
- No pastry blender? No problem! I actually prefer using my hands for this recipe. There’s something so satisfying about feeling the texture change as you work, and your warm fingers distribute the butter perfectly while keeping those essential crumbles intact.
- One thing I love about sbrisolona is that it actually gets better after a day or two as the flavors meld together. Just store it in an airtight container at room temperature for up to a week.
- It freezes beautifully too. I often make a batch, break it into pieces, and freeze half for future cravings. Just layer the pieces with parchment in a freezer container and they’ll keep for at least three months. Let them thaw at room temperature when you’re ready to enjoy.
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