Marche — the ciambellone (ring cake) tradition is pan-Italian, but the Marchigiani version is specifically defined by the olive oil and anise combination. The ring shape is the traditional Italian cake form for Sunday baking — practical (easy to slice, good crumb structure) and symbolic (the ring as completeness).
Ciambellone marchigiano is the classic ring cake of the Marche Sunday table: a large, ring-shaped cake made with olive oil (not butter), eggs, sugar, and a combination of flour and fine semolina (in the traditional version) that produces a slightly coarser texture than an all-flour cake. The olive oil gives it a distinctive green, slightly fruity flavour note; the lemon zest and anise seeds (or anise liqueur) provide the aromatic identity; the shape (ring) is traditional across the Apennine regions. It is neither light nor heavy — it is the paradigm of the Italian country cake: dense enough to keep several days, simple enough to make on Sunday morning, flavourful enough to require no accompaniment.
Ciambellone marchigiano has a flavour that declares its olive oil origin — the slightly green, fruity note of good Marchigiani oil is present throughout. The anise adds a warm, slightly liquorice note. The lemon zest brightens. The texture is slightly coarser than a butter cake — more satisfying, more honest. With a glass of Verdicchio, it is the Marchigiano Sunday afternoon.
In a bowl, whisk eggs and sugar until pale and doubled in volume. Slowly incorporate the olive oil in a thin stream (like making a mayonnaise emulsion) — the eggs hold the oil in suspension and prevent separation. Add flour and semolina (3:1 ratio by weight), baking powder, lemon zest, and anise seeds (or 2 tablespoons of anisette). Mix until just combined — do not over-work. Pour into a well-oiled ring mould. Bake at 170°C for 35-40 minutes until a skewer comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes in the mould, then turn out. Dust with icing sugar when completely cool.
The quality of the olive oil is the primary variable in this cake — a fragrant, fresh Marchigiani oil produces a cake with a distinctive green-fruity note that butter cakes cannot replicate. The anise seed or anisette liqueur (Mistrà, the local Marchigiani anise spirit, is traditional) is the secondary flavour — use the seed for a more rustic character; the liquid for a more diffuse anise note.
Adding oil too quickly — the emulsion breaks and the oil separates from the egg mixture. Using assertive olive oil — a light, fruity Marchigiani olive oil is correct; a pungent, intensely bitter oil overwhelms the cake. Under-baking — the ciambellone should spring back when touched; remove from oven only when completely set.
Carol Field, The Italian Baker; Slow Food Editore, Marche in Cucina