Spongata di Brescello

Ingredients

• For the pastry
• 250 g plain flour
• 100 g unsalted butter, cold, cut into cubes
• 60 g caster sugar
• 1 egg, beaten
• For the filling
• 80 g fine dry breadcrumbs
• 20 g unsalted butter, for toasting the breadcrumbs
• 200 g honey, warmed until fluid
• 60 g walnuts, roughly chopped
• 60 g blanched almonds, roughly chopped
• 40 g pine nuts
• 60 g candied citrus peel, finely diced
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon, dominant spice
• ¼ tsp ground nutmeg
• ¼ tsp ground cloves
• To finish
• 1 tbsp icing sugar, for dusting once cool

Method

1. 1
   Make the pastry. Rub the cold butter into the flour until the mixture resembles coarse sand. Add the caster sugar and the beaten egg and work briefly into a smooth dough. Press into a disc, wrap, and rest in the refrigerator for 30 minutes. The dough is ready when it holds its shape cleanly without sticking to the hand.
2. 2
   Toast the breadcrumbs. Melt the 20 g of butter in a heavy pan over a moderate heat, add the breadcrumbs, and stir constantly until they are a deep, even gold. This is the structural matrix of the filling; raw or pale breadcrumbs will produce a pasty, heavy interior. The crumbs are done when they are uniformly golden and smell of toasted grain.
3. 3
   Build the filling. Warm the honey in the same pan until fully fluid. Add the toasted breadcrumbs and stir off the heat until combined. Fold in the walnuts, almonds, pine nuts, candied citrus peel, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves. Stir until the mass is thick and cohesive — it must hold a shape when pressed and must neither pour nor crumble. This is where the dish lives or dies: a filling too wet will make the pastry soggy; too dry and it will crack on cutting. Set aside to cool to room temperature.
4. 4
   Roll and line. Divide the rested dough into two equal pieces. On a lightly floured surface, roll each piece to 2–3 mm — cracker-thin. Line a shallow round tin, 18–20 cm in diameter, with the first sheet, pressing it gently into the base and up the sides. The pastry should be just visible through itself when held to the light.
5. 5
   Fill and seal. Spread the cooled filling evenly over the pastry base to a level, compact layer. Lay the second sheet of pastry on top and press the edges together firmly to seal. Trim any excess. Prick the surface in several places with a fork to allow steam to vent during baking.
6. 6
   Bake at 180 °C for 25–30 minutes. The spongata is done when the pastry is a deep, uniform gold across the entire surface and the edges show the first signs of drawing back from the tin. Under-baked pastry will be softened by the honey filling within hours of cooling.
7. 7
   Cool completely on a wire rack before unmoulding. Dust the surface with icing sugar. Serve at room temperature, cut in thin wedges. The spongata reaches its ideal state after 2–3 days of rest, when the filling has softened the pastry at the interface, creating a gradient from shattering crust at the exterior to soft-chewy centre.