Ingredients
Sponge
- 6large eggs, at room temperature
- 180 gcaster sugar
- 180 gplain flour, sifted twice
- 1 pinchof fine salt
- finely grated zest of 1 unwaxed lemon
- 1 tspground cinnamon, optional
Tin and finish
- 20 gbutter, softened, for the tin
- 1 tbspplain flour, for dusting
- 2 tbspicing sugar, for dusting
- 1glass of sweet moscatell or mistela, to serve
Directions
- Butter a 22 cm round tin, dust it with flour, knock out the excess and line the base with paper. Heat the oven to 170°C (350°F).
- Whisk the eggs, sugar, salt and lemon zest in a large bowl set over a pan of barely simmering water until the mixture reaches blood heat, about 3 minutes; the warmth is what lets it take on air.
- Off the heat, beat hard with an electric whisk for 8–10 minutes, until tripled in volume, very pale, and thick enough that a trailed ribbon sits on the surface for 3 seconds before sinking.
- Sift a third of the flour over the foam and fold it in with a large spoon, cutting down the middle and sweeping round, no more than 12 strokes. Repeat twice with the remaining flour and the cinnamon.
- Pour into the tin from low down, level the top with one pass and do not tap the tin, which knocks out the air you just built.
- Bake 35–40 minutes, without opening the door for the first 25, until the cake is deep gold, has shrunk very slightly from the sides and springs back when pressed in the centre.
- Cool 10 minutes in the tin, then turn out onto a rack and cool completely; the crumb is fragile while hot.
- Dust with icing sugar and serve in fingers with sweet moscatell, or with coffee at breakfast.
Technique
- Pa de pessic means pinch bread, from the way it is torn off in pieces. There is no butter and no raising agent in the traditional cake: every bubble in it comes from the whisked whole eggs, so the ribbon stage is not optional.
- Fold, never stir. Each extra stroke of the spoon deflates the foam, and an over-folded batter bakes into a dense, damp layer at the bottom.
- Sifting the flour twice matters more than it sounds. Lumps sink, and where flour sinks the sponge is heavy and streaked.
Substitutions
- For a moister, longer-keeping cake, replace 60 g of the flour with 60 g of ground almonds, the usual Pyrenean version.
- No electric whisk: separate the eggs, beat the yolks with two thirds of the sugar and the whites with the rest to soft peaks, then fold the two together with the flour.
Variations
- Pa de pessic de Vic, scented with cinnamon and baked in a tall fluted tin.
- A version with anise seed and a splash of ratafia in the batter, common in Andorran homes.
- Split and filled with fresh curd cheese and honey for a festival cake.
History
Catalan sponge whose name means pinch bread, from the habit of pinching pieces off the cake.
Frequently asked questions
What is Pa de pessic?
Pa de pessic is a dessert from Andorra: light sponge cake eaten with coffee or dessert wine. Catalan sponge whose name means pinch bread, from the habit of pinching pieces off the cake.
How long does Pa de pessic take to make?
Pa de pessic takes 25 min of preparation and 40 min of cooking. The recipe makes 8 servings, one 22 cm cake. It is rated medium to make.
What can I substitute in Pa de pessic?
Yes, within limits. For a moister, longer-keeping cake, replace 60 g of the flour with 60 g of ground almonds, the usual Pyrenean version. No electric whisk: separate the eggs, beat the yolks with two thirds of the sugar and the whites with the rest to soft peaks, then fold the two together with the flour.
What is the most important thing to get right in Pa de pessic?
Pour into the tin from low down, level the top with one pass and do not tap the tin, which knocks out the air you just built.
