Collodi-style chocolate cake with “beaks” (Torta coi becchi collodese al cioccolato) 🇮🇹
Original name: Torta coi becchi
Other names: Torta co’ becchi, torta coi becchi al cioccolato, torta coi becchi classica
Nationality: Italy 🇮🇹
Consumption area(s): Pescia
Introduction
The Collodi-style chocolate cake with “beaks” (Torta coi becchi collodese al cioccolato) is a traditional dessert of Collodi, a small village in Pescia, closely related to the Lucca-style version, from which it likely derives, sharing the same base ingredients:frolla pastry filled with rice cooked in milk and cocoa. The name comes from the word “becchi” (literally “beaks”), referring to the small pointed crimps along the edge of the pastry, used to seal the cake. Although very similar to the Lucca variant, the Collodi version maintains its own recognizable identity through slight differences in preparation and local tradition.
History of Collodi-style chocolate cake with “beaks” (Torta coi becchi collodese al cioccolato)
This cake is a traditional dessert from the hamlet of Collodi, typically prepared for the feast of Saint Bartholomew’s Day, the patron saint of the local parish, celebrated on August 24. In the past, every family would prepare its own version of this cake, and women, even those coming from other places, would learn how to make it as part of the local tradition. Recipes, in fact, varied from family to family, enriching the dish with unique nuances tied to the history and customs of each household.
Traditionally, the cake was baked in a communal oven, owned by someone who had one large enough, since electric ovens did not yet exist.
Collodi-style chocolate cake with “beaks” (Torta coi becchi collodese al cioccolato)
Іngredients
For the dough
- 300 g
type 00 flour (2 1/2 cups) - 100 g
butter (7 tbsp) - 100 g sugar (1/2 cup)
- 2
chicken egg - 1
chicken egg yolk - 12 g backing powder (2 1/2 tsp)
- 1 tbsp Alchermes liqueur
For the filling
- 200 g Originario rice (1 cup)
- 100 g Granutale sugar (1/2 cup)
- 50 g cocoa powder (1/2 cup)
- 250 ml
water (1 cup) - 250 ml entire milk (1 cup)
- 1
chicken egg - 1 tbsp Alchermes liqueur
- 1 untreated lemon
Іnstructions
For the filling
- Place the rice in a pot along with the water, milk, and some lemon zest, and cook covered until all the liquid is absorbed (this will take about 20–25 minutes).
- Once cooked, add the sugar and cocoa powder, then let the mixture rest overnight.
- The following day, take the filling and stir in the egg and Alchermes liqueur.
For the dought
- On a work surface, make a well with the flour and place the eggs, egg yolk, and Alchermes in the center, beginning to mix into a dough.
- Meanwhile, add the baking powder and softened butter in small pieces, continuing to knead until fully incorporated (since this dough belongs to the shortcrust pastry family, avoid overworking it).
Assembly and baking
- Lightly butter and flour a 24 cm (9½-inch) cake pan.
- Take small pieces of dough, flatten them, and place them in the pan to cover it completely, including the edges, pressing the borders together with your hands.
- Once the base is ready, add the filling and level it.
- Next, create the “beaks”: make diagonal cuts along the edge of the dough that extends beyond the filling, and roll the resulting points in the opposite direction of the cut. Repeat this process around the entire edge, maintaining the same cutting direction and opposite rolling for each point
- Preheat a fan-assisted oven to 250°C (480°F) and bake the cake for 5 minutes.
- Then lower the temperature to 200°C (390°F) and bake for another 20 minutes.
- Finally, reduce the temperature to 180°C (355°F) and bake for the last 20 minutes.
- Allow the cake to cool, then serve it cold, cutting portions using the “beaks” as a guide.
Notes:
Nutritional facts table
Please note that nutritional values may vary slightly depending on the ingredients used.
| Nutrients | Total (8 people) | Per serving |
| Calories (kcal) | 3780.26 | 472.53 |
| Total fat (g) | 93.52 | 11.69 |
| ———Saturated fat (g) | 67.46 | 8.43 |
| Cholesterol (mg) | 800 | 100 |
| Sodium (mg) | 1.8 | 0.2 |
| Total carbohydrates (g) | 668.82 | 83.60 |
| ———Dietary fiber (g) | 28.79 | 3.60 |
| ———Total sugar (g) | 214.06 | 26.76 |
| Protein (g) | 69.08 | 8.64 |