Rab Torte (Rapska Torta)
It is believed that Rab Torte was served for the first time in 1177. when Pope Alexander III, escorted by his ten galleys, was overtaken by a storm as he was crossing the Adriatic, and took cover under the cliffs and in the harbors of Croatian island Rab (and town), and thus by a quirk of fate arrived in Rab just after the renovation of the Cathedral of the Assumption, which he consecrated on the occasion. In order to enhance this unexpected ceremony and to express their respect, nuns of the Benedict order served him cake on the host – Rab cake. The original recipe for the first Rab cake is kept in the archives of the Benedictine abbey of St. Andrew on the southern coast of island Rab. I am posting the recipe of madam Dunja from “Vilma Patisserie” from town Rab.
DIRECTIONS
- Blanch and peel the almonds, dry for several days at room temperature.
- Grind the almonds by hand; add sugar, vanilla sugar, orange and lemon zest, eggs and maraschino. Each time an ingredient is added, gently mix with the fingertips. Do this 5-6 times.
- Made a soft pastry of the butter, sugar, eggs and salt, and add flour as needed.
- Roll the pastry out into the required shape and place it on a greased baking tin. Put the filling onto the pastry. From the remnants, cut out strips 1 cm wide and line the sides of the filling, making little waves. Then, with a fork impress little tracks along the surface of the filling.
- Bake in preheated oven at 170°C for about 25 minutes, until the stuffing obtains a gold color.
- Decorate with icing sugar, serve with tea, liqueur or Muscat grappa.