Easter holidays have finally arrived and you can take advantage of it baking with your children our Easter cake, called Pinza and its funniest version called Titole. This is a traditional cake from Trieste, the capital of the Italian region Friuli Venezia Giulia.
It will take the hole afternoon to make it, but we guarantee that your children would love it, especially if you’ll end up eating a well deserved slice of Pinza with a spoonful of Nutella.
INGREDIENTS for 3 Titole cakes and one Pinza (divided into three doughs)
3 hard eggs (coloured) to decorate the Titole
First dough
100 gr flour
25 gr sugar
20 gr brewer’s yeast
100 gr milk
Dissolve the yeast in warm milk, then add 100 gr flour and 25 gr sugar.
Knead until obtaining a uniform batter. Cover the bowl with transparent film and let it rise in a warm place until doubled (for at least 30 minutes).
Second dough
200 gr flour
25 gr sugar
15 gr melted tepid butter
1 egg yolk
1 egg
When the first dough has doubled in volume, alternately add a little at a time flour, sugar, melted tepid butter, egg yolks and at the end the egg.
Mix well, cover the bowl with transparent film and let it rise in a warm place until doubled (for about two hours).
Third dough
325 gr flour
100 gr sugar
25 gr melted tepid butter
2 egg yolks (you’ll use the egg whites to brush the cakes)
2 eggs
grated lemon and orange zest
50 gr Rhum
pinch of salt
After the dough has risen a second time, add to it the flour, sugar, melted butter and a pinch of salt. Mix well and then start adding the egg yolks, one at a time, finishing by adding slowly the eggs and the Rhum. Flavour the dough mixing the grated lemon and orange zest. Knead for at least 5 minutes, if you use a kneading machine, until the dough becomes smooth and elastic. Cover the bowl with transparent film and let it rise again in a warm place for about one hour.
After one hour, divide the dough into 4 cakes (270 gr each), one for making the Pinza e three for the Titole.
To make the Pinza, shape one of the piece of dough as seen in the picture below.
Arrange it on buttered baking paper and allow to rise in a warm place for the last time (about one hour). When it has almost doubled in size, brush the Pinza with egg white and use scissors to make star-shaped cuts about 3 cm deep.
Preheat the oven to 180-190°C and bake the Pinza until brown (about 20-30 min.).
To make the Titole divide every cake into 2 parts, of 180 gr and 90 gr each.
Start rolling these two pieces in order to make two cords (one shorter and one longer). Cross them as in the picture below and put the hard egg in the intersection. Then braid the three parts until you finish the dough.
Brush the Titole with egg white and bake until brown (about 20-30 min).
mad and delicacy 
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