Recipe for the “Corollo”

The "corollo" is a typical cake from the Island of Elba that is thought to have started with the May festival in the Commune of Campo, when the young men who didn't have a girlfriend sang the "Song of May" to the unmarried girls in the town. The following day, the girls made the men the typical cake with a hole in the middle, that was put on poles with bows round them and then delivered on special carts.

Over the years, the "corollo" has now become how family members and friends show their affection at festivals, and that is simply a way of celebrating a special event; a typical, traditional cake that is always on the tables in Elba at Christmas and Easter.

500 gr. of flour, 150 gr. of butter, 300 gr. of sugar, 4 eggs, a glass of aniseed liquer, a glass of milk, grated rind of 1 lemon, 1 sachet of baking powder.

Preparation

Make a well in the flour; add the beaten eggs and softened butter.

Add the baking powder, the sugar, the liquer, the lemon rind and the tepid milk.

Mix thouroughly. Grease and flour a ring shaped baking tin, add the mixture and bake in a moderate oven (180°) for about 45 minutes.

Remove from oven, leave to cool and sprinkle with icing sugar before serving.

Photographs by Gabila Gerardi - Blog Panedolcealcioccolato