Taste of Tuscany

Brighten your days with these Italian feel-good recipes

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Chocolate & Amarena cherry cake

SERVES 4

Ingredients

125g unsalted butter, plus extra for greasing

120g dark chocolate, broken into small pieces

Pinch of sea salt

100g Amarena cherries, roughly chopped, plus

3 tbsp of the cherry syrup

100g caster sugar

2 large organic eggs, beaten

125g self-raising flour

For the top

250g fresh ricotta, drained

1 tbsp icing sugar

2 tbsp Amarena cherries, plus 2 tbsp of the cherry syrup

1. Preheat the oven to 170°C/ 150°C fan/gas mark 2. Butter a 20cm (8 inch) cake tin and line with baking parchment. Melt the butter in a saucepan, then remove from the heat.

2. Add the chocolate and salt, and stir well until completely melted. Stir in the cherries and cherry syrup, then add the sugar and mix in the eggs. Bit by bit, mix in the flour.

3. With the help of a spatula, pour the batter into the cake tin and bake for 45-50 minutes, until a cake tester inserted in the centre comes out cleanish.