Name: Mario Batali's Chestnut-Apple Ciambella
Yield: 8
Ingredients: 1/2 c. dried currents; 1/2 c. grappa; 1 c. light brown sugar; 1/2 c. granulated sugar; 1 1/2 c. cake flour; 1/2 c. chestnut flour; 1/2 tsp. ground cloves; 1 tsp. baking soda; 1 tsp. baking powder; 1 tsp. salt; 6 separated, at room temperature; 1/2 c. Extra virgin olive oil; 1/2 c. buttermilk; 1/2 c. fresh chestnuts; 2 Rome apples (or any soft tart cooking apple); 2 c. confectioners’ sugar; 4 tsp. light corn syrup; 1 c. mascarpone

Step 1Place the currants in a small bowl, add the grappa, and set aside to soak for 1 hour.

Step 2Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly butter and flour a Bundt pan.

Step 3In a large bowl, combine the brown sugar, granulated sugar, cake flour, chestnut flour, cloves, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Mix until well blended. Add the egg yolks, the oil, and the buttermilk, and, using an electric mixer, beat until smooth.

Step 4Drain the currants, reserving the soaking grappa. Fold the currants, chestnuts, and apples into the batter.

Step 5In a separate bowl, beat the egg whites until stiff. Fold the egg whites into the batter, and then pour the batter into the Bundt pan. Place the pan in the oven and bake for 1 hour, or until a toothpick inserted into the cake comes out clean.

Step 6Remove the pan from the oven and set it aside to cool for 10 minutes. Then invert the cake onto a plate.

Step 7In a small bowl, stir together the confectioners’ sugar, 4 teaspoons of the reserved soaking grappa, and the corn syrup until smooth and glossy. (If it is too thick to spread,add another teaspoon of corn syrup.) Pour the icing over the peak of the cake all around the ring, and allow it to set for 10 minutes.

Step 8Drink a shot of the remaining grappa in the kitchen before serving the cake with a bowl of the mascarpone on the side.