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Boccone dolce means “sweet mouthful.” It is a classic Italian dessert. It’s similar to our Himmelstorte Recipe but the Boccone Dolce is a cake without any cake. Instead, it’s made up of three crunchy meringue layers, chocolate, cream, berries, and more berries. Each slice is drizzled with a berry syrup. Oh my gosh! It’s the best of everything in one cake.
My friend Mila Ivanov sent me this wonderful recipe and I’m so glad she did! I made this for my sister’s baby shower, and it was a hit! There was a run on the cake and no slice was left behind. Mila, thank you so much!
Before you start, Watch how to make the Boccone Dolce:
P.S. Recipe updated 5/12/16 – reduced the amount of egg whites and sugar, added cream of tartar to stabilize and salt for flavor, increased mixing time to 7 minutes, rephotographed and also, added a super handy how-to video, all because I think you’re worth it! 🙂
Boccone Dolce Cake Ingredients:
10 egg whites, room temp (about 1 1/3 cups + 1 Tbsp of egg whites)
1 3/4 cups sugar
1/4 tsp cream of tartar
1/4 tsp salt
For the Berry Syrup:
2-4 cups fresh or thawed frozen strawberries
1-2 Tbsp granulated sugar, or to taste
Frosting & Topping Ingredients:
3 cups heavy whipping cream
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 cup chocolate chips (milk chocolate or semi-sweet, or both)
1/2 lb strawberries
1 pint raspberries or other berries to decorate
Preheat the Oven to 200 °F.
1. Draw three 9 1/2″ circles with a pen on parchment paper, then flip the paper over so you aren’t placing meringue over ink. Use a pen so you can still see the circle through the paper.
2. Beat the Room Temp Egg whites with sugar, 1/4 tsp salt, and 1/4 tsp cream of tartar for about 7 minutes on high speed in your stand mixer with the whisk attachment, or until stiff peaks form. Note: if they aren’t at room temp, they will take much longer to beat.
3. Divide the egg white mix between the three circles on parchment paper. Form the three layers into about 1″ tall circles and shape them as evenly as possible. Flatten the top so the layers sit on top of each other easily when you assemble the cake.
4. Bake for 6 hours at 200˚F, rotating the pans every 2 hours for more even cooking (mine were on two racks in the upper and lower thirds of the oven). If any of your layers are still springy in the center after baking, turn off the oven and leave them in there another hour to fully dry out. Remove from oven, pull layers off the baking pans and cool to room temp.
How to Make Frosting:
1. Freeze the mixing bowl and whisk attachment for 15 minutes. The cream will form best if your bowl and whisk are super cold. Also, keep your heavy cream in the fridge until you are ready to use.
2. Beat 3 cups heavy whipping cream with 1/2 cup powdered sugar for about 2 minutes or until stiff peaks form. Refrigerate frosting until ready to use.
Assembling Boccone Dolce Cake:
Assemble the cake shortly before serving. It is best eaten within 2 hours of assembling.
1. Rinse and dry berries and slice strawberries the long way.
2. Melt chocolate according to package instructions. As soon as the chocolate is melted, spread it over the tops of each of the three layers (see tip for success #2 below).
3. Place the first meringue layer on the platter you will be serving the cake on. Spread or pipe a little less than 1/3 of the frosting over the first layer. Place a layer of sliced strawberries over the frosting.
4. Repeat with the next two layers and decorate the top by piping the remaining whipped cream and topping with berries and more chocolate if desired.
Serving the Cake:
The slices get a little messy and that’s ok! 🙂 Use a food processor or blender to pulse your thawed strawberries with 1 to 2 Tbsp sugar and drizzle over the top of each slice.
I’ve been bombarded with requests for this cake. Hope you enjoy it thoroughly!! Does anyone know what I can do with all of those egg yolks hanging out in the fridge?
Boccone Dolce Cake Recipe
Ingredients
Boccone Dolce Cake Ingredients:
For the Berry Syrup:
- 2-4 cups fresh or thawed frozen strawberries
- 1-2 Tbsp granulated sugar, or to taste
Frosting Ingredients:
- 3 cups heavy whipping cream
- 1/2 cup powdered sugar
Instructions
Prep:
- Preheat the Oven to 200°F. Draw three 9 1/2 inch circles with pen on parchment paper then flip paper over so you aren't placing meringue over ink. Use a pen so you can still see the circle through the paper.
How to Make Boccone Dolce Cake:
- Beat the room temp egg whites with sugar, 1/4 tsp salt, and 1/4 tsp cream of tartar for about 7 minutes on high speed in your stand mixer with the whisk attachment, or until stiff peaks form. Note: if they aren't at room temp, they will take much longer to beat.
- Divide the egg white mix between the three circles on parchment paper. Form the three layers into about 1" tall circles and shape them as evenly as possible. Flatten the top so the layers sit on top of each other easily when you assemble the cake.
- Bake for 6 hours at 200˚F, rotating the baking pans every 2 hours for more even cooking (mine were on two racks in the upper and lower thirds of the oven). If any of your layers are still springy in the center after baking, turn off the oven and leave them in there another hour to fully dry out. Remove from baking pans and cool to room temp.
How to Make Frosting:
- Freeze the mixing bowl and whisk attachment for 15 minutes. The cream will form best if your bowl and whisk are super cold. Also, keep your cream in the fridge until you are ready to whip it.
- Beat 3 cups heavy whipping cream with 1/2 cup powdered sugar for about 2 minutes or until stiff peaks form. Refrigerate frosting until ready to use.
Assembling the Cake:
- Rinse and dry berries and slice strawberries the long way.
- Melt chocolate according to package instructions. As soon as the chocolate is melted, spread it over the tops of each of three layers (see notes for tip #2).
- Place the first meringue layer on the platter you will be serving the cake on. Spread or pipe a little less than 1/3 of the frosting over the first layer. Place a layer of sliced strawberries over the frosting.
- Repeat with the next two layers and decorate the top by piping remaining whipped cream and topping with berries and more chocolate if desired.
Serving the Cake:
- Use a food processor or blender to pulse your thawed strawberries with 1 to 2 Tbsp sugar and drizzle over the top of each slice.
Notes
1. Meringue layers take awhile to bake/dry out in the oven so feel free to make them the day before. Let cool to room temp and cover with cellophane on the counter overnight.
2. This cake should be assembled the day you are eating it and is BEST eaten within 2 hours of assembly since the frosting softens the meringue.
3. If you want the cake to stay crunchy longer, brush every layer (top and bottom) with melted chocolate. Once chocolate hardens, it will act as a barrier between the meringue and the cream resulting in a crunchier cake, making it last an extra hour or two at room temp. .
4. If you forget to bring your eggs to room temp, you can place egg whites in a bowl and set the bowl over luke-warm water for 5 to 10 minutes to bring them to room temp, giving them a swirl or two in the process.
This recipe is fantastic! First time I made it everything went so perfect and it came out beautifully. Unfortunately my now 2nd-5th time making it, for some reason during the drying process I’m oozing sugar and it’s coming out chewy. I’m not sure what I’m doing so differently than the first time around. I tried powdered sugar this last time hoping maybe the sugar would incorporate better, but I think it turned out worse!! Anyone have any tips? Thanks!
Hi MR, depending on where you are, it is possible the weather may be impacting it. This cake does not do well with high humidity, it likes dry weather. Also, you may want to check to ensure its not getting to hot too fast in your oven with the summer heat.
If you want to be a star at your next gathering, then make this cake! I’ve made it a couple of times now and it is outstanding. Evan after a heavy meal the cake is very light, flavorful and a perfect finish. It only takes a few minutes to assemble at the last minute if you already have the merinque layers baked, sauce prepared, berries sliced and cream whipped. I will add that last time I made it I had prepared the cream earlier in the day and it had gone a bit too soft by dessert time so I will make it last minute next time.
That’s just awesome! Thank you for sharing your wonderful review, Sue!
Love your Boccone Dolce!!
My family insists I make it for dessert every year for Christmas since I started about 8 years now. They love it so much, and simply will not accept anything less!
Thank you so much!
You’re very welcome, Stacey!
Hi Natasha:
I make this, using your meringue recipe with a bit less sugar, as I add a little sweet liquor, like raspberry into the berries. I also add about 1/4 cup whipping cream to the chocolate chips aftre melting them, to make the chocolate spread more easily. Your cake is much more beautiful than mine! And for the egg yolks, we are doing Christmas in July this year, so I’m making cut out butter Christmas tree cookies. So simple, 1 lb butter, mix with 1 cup sugar, add egg yolks one at a time, then add enough flour to hold the dough together for rolling, about 6 cups. That’s it. Roll and cut out cookies and bake about 10 minutes. These aren’t very sweet. They were my mother’s recipe and she specifically wanted the taste of the butter and egg yolks to be foreward. Really tasty and easy. Hope you find this useful.
Thank you so much for sharing that with me, Shannon!
Natasha,
Do you think I would be able to stick a cake topper and candles into the top layer?
Thanks
Hi Natalya! A few candles should be fine, nothing too heavy. I think a cake topper would be fine as well depending on its size. It’s just a fragile cake.
Hi Natasha,
Can the layers be made two days in advance? Thank you!
Hi Eleonora, you can make the layers a day in advance and keep them at room temperature.
Natasha,
Should I use “convection” or “bake” setting on me oven to make this cake? Also, opening the door and rotating cake layers during baking won’t deflate them, right?
HI Irina, no it won’t deflate them. They will be drying out at that point and the centers will be set enough not to collapse.
Love this cake. First time making it my self. Natasha’s recipe was very detailed and easy to read and make. Thank you 😊
You’re welcome! Thank you so much for sharing that with me.
Hi Natasha,
I know you usually add the nutritional information with your recipes but I dont see them here. Can you tell me the kcal/serving?
Hi Renee, we usually have the nutrition info for most savory recipes, but don’t have them for most desserts yet. We are slowly working on that.
love this dessert, one of my faves! for the remaining egg yolks, i usually salt cure them, then use them to grate over pasta, put in leafy green salads, and for other dishes (such as on toast spread with ricotta and topped with flat leaf parsley).
Nice one! Thanks for sharing that with us, Kate.
I am wondering if I can use egg whites from a carton. Would you recommend that? This way I won’t deal with leftover yolks.
I Irene, I have not tried that yet to advise but I imagine that should work too. If you do an experiment, please share with us how it goes.
I’m hoping to make this for a big family event this coming weekend, but I’m totally flummoxed.
You specify the circles on the parchment to be 9.5″. And it looks like you’re baking them on half-sheet pans. There is simply no way on earth I can get two 9.5″ circles on one sheet of parchment (which is 16 inches long, to fit in a standard half-sheet pan). Even staggered, there is no way. I’m wondering if your 9.5″ measurement is correct, because I’ve tripled-checked my calculations, and you cannot fit two 9.5″ circles into a 16″ x 13″ (half-sheet pan) space. It’s not even close.
Check out https://www.engineeringtoolbox.com/circles-within-rectangle-d_1905.html, where you can calculate how many circles of a given diameter you can fit into a space of whatever dimensions you specify.
You can (just barely) do it with two 8.5″ circles, but not at all with two 9.5″ circles.
Hi Josh, I used a larger baking sheet. It was this baker’s big sheet or 3/4 sheet. You can make the rounds into 8.5″ circles, but you may have a small amount of leftover ‘batter’, or you can make them slightly taller and bake a little longer.
Hi, Natasha,
Thank you so much for the fast reply! I really thought I must be going crazy, trying to make it work with a standard half-sheet pan!
The 3/4-sheet pan is very tempting and I just may have to purchase one (or two).
Thanks again,
Josh
You’re welcome Josh. Hope it all goes well!
Natasha,
Where can you buy cream of tartar because I can’t find it anywhere in any of my grocery stores. Also, can I substitute cream of tartar for lemon juice?
Thank You
Hi Marya, we find it in the baking or spice aisle. It is a white powder sold in a spice jar. It will still work without cream of tartar. I’ve made it without the cream of tartar before with good results but I do think the cream of tartar helps to make it more “fail proof.” If your whites are at room temp and you beat with sugar the same amount of time, you shouldn’t run into any issues. Another good test for when the meringue is ready is if you rub a little bit between your fingers, you should hardly feel any of the sugar grains – it should feel pretty smooth. I hope that helps! Enjoy!
Natasha,
Thank you so much for your help!! I appreciate it.
You’re so welcome Marya!
Hi Natasha
Can I half this recipe?
Thanks
I haven’t tried that yet to advise. If you do an experiment, please share with us how it goes.
Can this recipe be halved?
Hi Agnes, I think that could work but you would have some challenges. I haven’t tested the cake that way so I wouldn’t be able to make any recommendations on thinner cake layers (baking times). Also, if you made the cake layers the same thickness and baked for the same amount of time, a cake half the size might be difficult to slice. I think it could work but would require some experimentation.
Hi! So I was wondering, if you can make this cake in a convection oven ?
Hi Creshel, I always make this in a conventional oven. I suspect it wouldn’t dry out properly on the inside and you might end up with gaps in the center if you speed dry it in a convection oven.
I recently had this dessert st Sardi’s but it was nothing like this recipe. It was a solid slice very white and creamy with whole frozen strawberries in the slice.
How interesting! Sounds beautiful! Thank you for sharing this with us!
If you want the recipe that Sardis uses, get Vincent Price’s cookbook..the recipe is in there.