Torta Bertolina (Italian Grape Cake)

What is Torta Bertolina?

Torta Bertolina is a traditional Italian grape cake served in autumn. It’s associated with the city of Crema in the province, Cremona, in Northern Italy.

I was introduced to this cake at an Italian bakery in Jersey City. I ate it over and over again over the first few weeks of fall about 2 years ago. The type of grapes you use in this cake are extremely important. In Italy they refer to the grapes as uva fragola or strawberry grapes. Sometimes they’re also referred to as American grapes. For those of us here in America, we refer to these grapes as concord grapes (like the jelly of course!).

There are many different versions of this cake. It’s often made in a round pan, but at times people use a rectangular pan. The type of flour typically used is 00 flour, sometimes with part fine cornmeal or whole wheat flour. I’ve seen some iterations that use fresh yeast and some that use baking powder, or the Italian equivalent, like these vanilla flavored baking powder packets. Torta Bertolina can be made with butter, olive oil or a more neutral flavored oil.

Out of all of the versions of this cake, I’m sharing my favorite along with substitutions for difficult to find ingredients. Plus, I have a bonus version of this cake recipe using part cornmeal!

Ingredient Notes

• Flour- I prefer to make this cake using 00 flour. It’s easy to find online if you can’t find it in person, however, you can use all purpose flour instead. The 00 flour provides such a light, fluffy texture, but I understand this is not easily available to everyone. After doing some research, I learned pastry flour is another good substitute. I also have a second version of this cake listed in the recipe notes, which uses part 00 (or an alternative) and part fine cornmeal. This version has a special texture and flavor from the corn flour and is very delicious, too!
• Grapes- It’s very important to use either concord grapes or a similar variety such as the seedless thomcords, or another sweet, tart black grape. If you can’t find any of these varieties, I suggest trying this recipe with blackberries or blueberries, rather than another type of grape. Those berries will actually provide a more similar flavor experience.
• Butter, milk and eggs- Make sure these ingredients are all at room temperature before making this cake for the most homogenous batter, and best end result.

Recipe Steps

• First, preheat the oven to 350F. Line a 9 inch springform pan with parchment paper. Grease and flour the pan (1).
• Clean the grapes and coat ¾ of them in 1 tablespoon of the flour (2). Reserve the remaining grapes for the top of the cake.
• Whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt (3).
• Whip the butter and sugar together until pale and fluffy (4). You can use a standing mixer or hand beaters and a bowl.

Recipe Tips and FAQs

1. If you can’t find concord, thomcord or another similar black cake, try this recipe with blackberries or blueberries.
2. If you can’t find 00 flour, try pastry flour or even all purpose flour. For another interesting version, use part corn flour as mentioned in the recipe notes of the recipe card.
3. If your eggs, milk and butter are not at room temperature, there a few tricks that help speed the process. Place the eggs in a bowl of hot water until them come to room temperature. Soften the butter in the microwave over power 2 or 3 for 10 second intervals or until desired texture. You can also warm the milk in the microwave for a few seconds.

Related Recipes

1. Polenta Plum Upside Down Cake
2. Fig and Almond Cake
3. Rhubarb Custard Cake
4. German Apple Almond Cake
5. Carrot Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Mascarpone Frosting

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