A rustic cake from the San Marino and Romagna food tradition with cornmeal, apples, dried fruit and nuts.
Bustrengo belongs to the shared culinary landscape around San Marino and neighbouring Romagna. Recipes vary by household and may combine stale bread or flour, cornmeal, fruit, nuts and citrus.
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Ingredients
- 180 g fine cornmeal
- 120 g plain flour
- 500 ml milk
- 300 g apples, diced
- 100 g raisins
- 80 g walnuts, chopped
- 100 g honey or sugar
- 2 eggs
- 50 ml olive oil
- 5 g baking powder
- 2 g cinnamon
- 5 g lemon zest
- 2 g salt
Method
- Heat the oven to 180°C and grease a 24 cm baking dish.
- Whisk milk, eggs, honey and oil.
- Stir in cornmeal, flour, baking powder, cinnamon and salt.
- Fold in apples, raisins, walnuts and lemon zest.
- Bake 45–55 minutes until set and browned. Cool before slicing.
Chef Notes
Bustrengo is intentionally rustic and moist rather than a light sponge cake. Let it cool before cutting cleanly.
Substitutions
Pears can replace apples. Pine nuts or almonds can replace walnuts.
Storage
Keep covered at cool room temperature for 1 day or refrigerate for up to 3 days.
Allergen Notes
Contains wheat, milk, egg and tree nuts.
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Chef-tested recipe
A rustic cake from the San Marino and Romagna food tradition with cornmeal, apples, dried fruit and nuts.
