Chocolate and walnut sweet pasta recipe (maccheroni dolce). A traditional holiday recipe from Umbria.

5 from 18 votes

Chocolate and walnut sweet pasta recipe (maccheroni dolce). A traditional holiday recipe from Umbria.

This easy to make chocolate and walnut sweet pasta recipe from Umbria in Central Italy is a unique dessert. This 'cake' is traditional at Halloween and Christmas Eve. But, I think it’s a fabulous way to wow your guests any timeof year!

Prep Time30

Cook Time15

Refrigerator time12

Total Time12 45

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: Central Italy, Italian, Umbria

Keyword: authentic Italian pasta recipe, chocolate pasta, dessert pasta, sweet pasta

Servings:

Calories: 468kcal

Author: Jacqui

Ingredients

200 g pasta tubes (7oz) maccheroni, rigatoni, tortiglioni etc
200 g breadcrumbs (7oz)
200 g walnuts (7oz) ground or finely chopped
100 g sugar (3.5oz) I used fine cane sugar
25 g sweet cocoa (1oz)
25 g bitter cocoa (1oz)
50 g dark chocolate (2oz)
1 teaspoon cinnamon powder
zest of half a lemon
100 g Alchermes (3floz)
1 shot rum (1.5 floz) or 2 if not using Alchermes

Instructions

Grind or crush the walnuts into small pieces (not too fine) in a food processor. You can also put them in a bag and crush them with a rolling pin or mallet.
Put the ground walnuts in a bowl, add the breadcrumbs and sugar and mix. Then add the 2 kinds of cocoa and mix again. Next put in the cinnamon and lemon zest and finally add the rum and Alchermes (or just rum). Mix everything together well. Remove a cupful of the mixture and set aside.
Put a pot of water on to boil for the pasta. I didn’t add salt. Cook the pasta a little more than al dente so it’s a bit soft and sticky. Once the pasta is ready, save a cupful of the cooking water, drain and add it to the chocolate mixture. Mix well until all the pasta is incorporated in the chocolate condiment. Add some of the saved pasta cooking water if it seems to dry.
Put the pasta and chocolate mix into a round, square or rectangular dish. I used a springform cake tin. Using a spatula or wooden spoon press the cake down so that the surface is even and the sides are full. You don’t want gaps along the edges ofthe cake.
Spread the extra chocolate and walnut mixture over the top of the cake. Then melt the dark chocolate with some of the pasta cooking water in the microwave or on the stove top. Then pour and spread this sauce over the top of the cake.
Refrigerate for 12 hours or overnight. Bring your Umbrian sweet pasta cake to room temperature before slicing and serving!

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