10+ Facts About Amalfi Lemon Cake and Why To Try It

Are you planning a visit to South Italy’s Amalfi Coast? Then make sure you put the delicious lemon cake on your TO-DO list.

However, if you’re not travelling, but you simply want to bring some true Italian flavour to your table, then read on. Because following the recipe won’t be enough.

You really want to visualize that Italian beauty, the essence of the Mediterranean sea, bright yellow Amalfi lemon – the very symbol of Campania’s coastline.

A little bit of background

As the Great Italian Chefs said it:

"Mention Amalfi to anyone with a hint of a food brain, and only one thing comes to mind - lemons."

Great Italian chefs Inspiring food lovers everywhere

Yes – this zesty, yellow fruit is an iconic symbol of not only Amalfi Coast, but Sorrento one as well.

There are two reasons I’m mentioning these two places:

Amalfi Coast and Sorrento Coast are two separate places. Even though they are very close to one another and quite similar - they do not even belong to the same provinces! While Amalfi Coast belongs to the province of Salerno, Sorrento one belongs to Naples.
The same goes for the lemons. Even though they are symbols of both coasts - they are not the same. They are equally special and delicious, but the Sorrento ones are a bit rounder, while the Amalfi ones are a bit elongated.

Make sure to memorize this by heart if you wish to sound very smart while serving your juicy lemon cake.

Now, let’s go back to the Amalfi Coast version.

Check out this list, and see for yourself if they are indeed so special:

Sfusato Amalfitano (the spindly lemon of Amalfi coast) first arrived in Italy by way of Middle Eastern merchants. In the preserved mosaics of Pompeii and Herculaneum, we can see clearly that they have been greatly appreciated even in the BC period. But, these lemons were much smaller and sourer than the ones we know today.
In the 11th century, a plot twist happened. Clever Italian farmers somehow managed to cross these lemons with local bitter oranges. And since then they've been cultivating and perfecting what we know today as Amalfi lemons.
Amalfi was a very powerful seafaring republic, and they traded these special lemons across the Mediterranean. Because of their uniqueness, they were a very desired item.
Unlike other everyday-supermarket-lemons, these ones are large (I saw one that was bigger than my head), sweet and extremely juicy. This explains why they're a very common ingredient of not only Italian desserts, but savoury dishes as well.
The skin is much softer, and the pith is much less bitter.
The skins are rich in healthy, flavourful oils – which is why a bit of Amalfi lemon zest goes a long way in a bowl of pasta – and they’re both packed with vitamin C.

With all this in mind – it’s not surprising that this coastline (both Amalfi and Sorrento) was a birthplace of limoncello, as well as the famous Delizia al Limone.

Pasticceria Sal De Riso – Minori, Amalfi Coast

Pasticceria Sal De Riso is located at the seafront of Minori (Amalfi coast town). And the man behind this heavenly place is Italy’s most famous pastry chef Salvatore de Riso.

But, he wasn’t the first one in the family to get famous for using lemons.

The history behind Sal De Riso

In 1908 Salvatore’s aunt Carolina Florio (Lilliana)and his father Antonio opened a bar/tobacco shop. When the summer came that very same year, Antonio started making granitas and ice creams made of zone’s famous lemons.

And the granitas were an absolute hit!

Granita is a semi-frozen dessert made from sugar, water and various flavourings. This dessert originates from Sicily.

Here’s how he made them, in words of Salvatore De Riso himself:

"They were homemade by my father. He scraped and grated the lemons with a piece of glass. Then he let all the tiny pieces fall into a mixture of water and sugar. After a few hours to this perfumed infusion he added lemon juice.
Then he mixed and mixed them still by hand in a metal washtub full of ice which was covered with salt so that it wouldn't melt quickly. With a spatula in hand, he mixed and mixed this liquid until it turned to ice chips, in other words, granita.
Still today the old folks who've always lived on the Amalfi Coast tell me how they used to come to Minori during the summer to savour my father's granita because it was out-of-this-world."

Salvatore De Riso Italian pastry chef

Salvatore De Riso

Salvatore De Riso is famous for his innovative way of thinking. His mission was to introduce new desserts to the South of Italy. His first invention were lemon profiterole, followed by a reinvention of tiramisu. He simply changed the ingredients of one of the most beloved Italian desserts. Salvatore used limoncello instead of coffee and lemon cream instead of mascarpone and zabaione.

The next in line was Dolce di Amalfi – a cake that stays fresh for three months. Together with limoncello, this makes a perfect souvenir.

In 1998 he invented his famous pear and ricotta cake. He used and is still using, only local products: hazelnuts from Giffoni, ricotta from Tramonti, and pears from Agerola.

This cake is among the top three desserts in his Pasticceria. The other two are Anastasia cake and – delizia al limone. So let’s talk about it!

Delizia al Limone

If you ask anybody in Campania what’s Sal De Riso’s most famous cake – they’ll tell you it’s Delizia al Limone.

Fun fact: Salvatore de Riso did not invent it.

Delizia al Limone was created for the first time in 1978, just around the corner – in Sorrento, by another famous pastry chef Carmine Marzuillo.

This creamy lemon delight became instantly one of the favourite sweets in Campania, but it was Sal De Riso that made it worldwide famous.

Now that you have all your facts and you can be an absolute Megamind on the topic, let’s talk about the recipe and ingredients.

Amalfi lemon cake recipe

Just how decadent is this creamy delight?

Well, Delizia al limone is a sponge cake filled with lemon cream, brushed with Limoncello syrup and covered in whipped cream and lemon glaze, sprinkled with lemon zest.

I truly hope you left counting calories at home before coming to Italy. But if you didn’t – now’s the time.

Sponge cake (5 servings)

Eggs 100 g
1 Egg yolk
Sugar 60 g
Cake flour 30 g
Potato or cornstarch 30 g
Vanilla bean ¼
Lemon zest ½

Lemon cream

Lemon syrup

Lemon curd

The main takeaway

I honestly don’t doubt that you’re a master chef – and if you actually decide to make this cake, do send me a photo. I still didn’t try to do it!

In fact – I’m hoping that this article pushed you towards making a decision to pack your suitcases and set the course for the beautiful Costiera Amalfitana.

Not much can compare with ordering a takeaway Delizia al limone (this way you’ll pay less), and strolling down the Minori boardwalk while enjoying the creamy delight under the South Italian sun.

My Travel Instagram

Like what you read? Don't just keep it for yourself then. Share it with your friends!

2 Comments

Royal CBD

May 10, 2020 at 10:45 am Reply

Hello there, I found your website by way of Google even as looking for a comparable topic, your
site came up, it seems to be good. I’ve bookmarked it in my google bookmarks.

Hello there, just turned into alert to your blog
thru Google, and located that it’s truly informative.
I’m going to watch out for brussels. I’ll be grateful when you proceed this in future.

Numerous other people will likely be benefited out of your writing.
Cheers!
- Walkindsky
  
  May 10, 2020 at 12:41 pm Reply
  
  Wow! Thank you so much, this is such a wonderful compliment. 🙂 I’m preparing a text about Positano, and a bunch of blogs about the South of Italy and its hidden gems. 🙂 I hope you’ll enjoy them.
  
  Keep in touch!
  
  T.

10+ Reasons Why You Should Taste Amalfi Coast Lemon Cake At Least Once In Your Lifetime

A little bit of background