Torta ta’ San Martin (Maltese Nuts & Dried Fruit Cake)

This is a mouth-watering traditional Maltese cake. It is prepared for the feast dedicated to Saint Martin, which fall on the 11th November. It is a rich cake packed with nuts and dried fruit.

I hope you will enjoy it! And as the Maltese people sing during this feast “ġewż, lewż, qastan, tin- kemm inħobb lil San Martin!” (trad. “walnuts, almonds, chestnuts and figs- gosh I love San Martin!”)

  • DifficultyEasy
  • CostMedium
  • Preparation time30 Minutes
  • Cooking time30 Minutes
  • Serving8 people
  • Cooking methodOven
  • CuisineMediterranea
  • SeasonalityAutumn, Winter

Ingredients

200 g shelled hazelnuts
200 g shelled walnuts
200 g shelled almonds
200 g dried figs
200 g fresh dates
130 g white flour type 0 (I used spelt)
130 g dark muscovado brown sugar
50 g sultana
2 eggs (whole)
1 organic orange (zest only)
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground cloves
11/2 teaspoon baking powder

Preparation

– put the sultana in a bowl and soak it in lukewarm water for about 20 minutes;
– roughly chop all the nuts and put them in a big bowl;
– chop the dried figs and the date, and mix them with the chopped nuts;
– add the grated orange zest;
– drain the sultana and add it to the rest of the fruit;
– put 2 eggs in a separate bowl together with the sugar, whip till you get a frothy smooth cream;
– sift the flour onto the whipped eggs, fold gently with a spoon to blend all the ingredients together;
– add the baking powder, the ground spices and fold everything together once again;
– pour the obtained mixture onto the bowl containing the nuts and fruit;
– fold gently until you amalgamate everything together;
– pour the thus obtained mixture onto a greased baking tray of 24 cm diameter;
– bake at 180 degrees for about 25/30 minutes;
– allow the cake to cool down, then remove it from the baking tray;

Notes

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