We prepared a syrup using Amaretto di Saronno liqueur to flavour the sponge cake and give it a little oomph. The dark chocolate used is 80 % dark chocolate, not overly sweet and well balanced with the light sweetness and acidity of the kiwis. A final nutty and crunchy note from the final sprinkling of hazelnuts was just right.

Serve 5-6, Tart Mould 26 cm diameter, Preparation 30 mins, Cooking 30 mins

  • 80 g softened unsalted butter
  • 90 g sugar, either white granulated sugar or brown sugar
  • 100 ml milk
  • 2 eggs
  • 2 teaspoons sifted baking powder
  • 150 g sifted white flour
  • Grated lemon peel + its juice
  • 2 yellow and 2 green kiwis, peeled and sliced
  • 400 g dark chocolate, to melt
  • Whole hazelnuts or chopped hazelnuts, to taste
  • For the syrup with liqueur:
  • 200 ml water
  • 100 g caster sugar
  • 50 ml Amaretto di Saronno Italian liqueur

Method

As kiwis are one of those fruits that blacken easily as soon as you peel them, a tip to prevent this from happening is to soak the kiwi slices in a bit of water and squeezed lemon juice or just lemon juice. This is obviously before decorating the tart or cake you are going to garnish. If you have pineapple juice, that’s fine too.

Preheat the oven to 180c/ 350 F/ Gas Mark 4.

In a bowl, mix the sugar with the softened butter cut into chunks until creamy. You can use either a wooden spoon or an electric whisk.
Crack in the two eggs and mix well.
Now add the milk, then the sifted flour and baking powder together with the grated lemon zest, mix all with electric whisk.

Grease and flour the bottom and sides of the tart mould well. That prevents the dough from sticking to the bottom and making it easier to remove.

Pour in the mixture, level well and bake in a static oven for about 20-25 minutes.

Peel and slice kiwis.

Tip: Since kiwis are among those fruits that easily turn black as soon as they are peeled, a tip to prevent this from happening is to run lemon juice over the surface of the kiwi slices at least 10 minutes before you go to decorate the cake or tart you are making.

Remove the sponge cake from the oven and allow it to cool completely, afterwards gently remove it from the mould.

Prepare the syrup:
Boil the water with sugar on a low flame for about 1 minute, let it cool down completely and afterwards add the Amaretto di Saronno and stir.

Use a pastry brush to moisten the surface of the sponge evenly, otherwise use a spoon.

Melt the dark chocolate in a bain-marie or even in the microwave, let it cool down a bit, then pour it evenly and level it with a spatula over the sponge-cake, add kiwi slices and sprinkle the chopped hazelnuts on top. Serve.

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