Italian Rose Cake - Torta Di Rosa
Imagine fluffy, soft rolls with a hint of zesty lemon, filled with creamy vanilla butter, and topped with a luscious vanilla glaze. This Italian rose cake, or Torta di Rosa, is a delicious twist on the classic cinnamon roll.
Equipment
- Stand mixer
- 8-9 inch cake pan
- Rolling Pin
- Whisk
Ingredients
Dough Ingredients
- 600 g all purpose flour or plain flour (5 cups)
- 1 packet dry active yeast (7 g)
- 75 g white sugar (1/3 cup)
- 1 tsp salt (skip if using salted butter)
- 2 eggs
- 250 ml water (1 cup)
- 85 g unsalted butter (6 tbsp)
- Zest of one lemon
Vanilla Butter Filling Ingredients
- 125 g unsalted butter
- 150 g white sugar (3/4 cup)
- 1 tsp vanilla paste or extract
Vanilla Glaze Ingredients
- 120 g icing sugar
- 1-3 tbsp milk
- 1/2 tsp vanilla paste or extract
Instructions
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine the sugar, salt, and yeast. Add two-thirds of the flour and mix well. Zest the lemon into the flour mixture and create a well in the centre.
- In a microwave-safe bowl or jug, heat the water and butter in 30-second increments until warm and the butter is mostly melted. Be careful not to overheat the mixture, as it could kill the yeast.
- Crack the eggs into a bowl and whisk them well. Pour the eggs into the well in the flour mixture, followed by the warm water and butter mixture. Stir until combined.
- Add the remaining flour and knead the dough on medium-high speed for 10-15 minutes. You’ll know it's ready when it no longer sticks to the slides of the bowl. Another way to check if the dough is ready is to perform the windowpane test. (To perform the windowpane test, pinch off a small piece of dough and stretch it gently. If it's stretchy and translucent, you've kneaded it enough.)
- Cover the dough with cling film and a cloth, and let it rise in a warm place for about an hour, or until it has doubled in size.
- While the dough is rising, prepare the vanilla filling by mixing the softened butter, sugar, and vanilla in a bowl, until smooth.
- Once the dough has risen, punch it down and roll it out into a long rectangle on a well-floured surface. Spread the vanilla butter mixture evenly over the dough, leaving a small space on the edge.
- From the long end, roll the dough away from you into a tight roll, sealing the bottom edge by pinching the dough together.
- Use unflavored floss or a sharp knife to cut the dough into 8 evenly sized rolls. Place them in a greased 8 or 9-inch cake pan and let them rise again for about 30 minutes.
- Bake the rolls at 175 degrees Celsius (350 degrees Fahrenheit) for 30 minutes, or until they are golden brown and no longer doughy. Allow them to cool.
- While the cake is cooling, make the glaze by, whisking the icing sugar, milk, and vanilla paste or extract in a large bowl until smooth. Adjust the consistency by adding more milk if needed.
- Once the rolls have cooled slightly, spread the glaze evenly over the Torta Di Rosa and enjoy!
Notes
- Use unflavoured floss - to cut the rolls, instead of a knife. This will give you a cleaner cut and make sure the rolls don’t get squished.
- Store the Italian Rose Cake - in a airtight container, once the glaze has fully set and store at room temperature at they should last for about 3 days
- If you don’t have a rolling pin - use can use a closed bottle of olive oil instead
- The recipe video is on my TikTok and IG - please tag @aceofspoons_ if you make this recipe