MARBLED RICOTTA CIAMBELLA

SERVES 8-10. PREP 15 MINS. COOK 40 MINS

Silvia Colloca’s most memorable Mother’s Day morning was four years ago, soon after her daughter Luna (above) was born.

Her two sons, Miro and Rafi, then six and 10, had rehearsed a Portuguese song from Eurovision that she loved, and treated her to a surprise morning performance. “They came into my room as I was nursing Luna and pulled out a guitar,” recalls Colloca, from SBS series Cook Like an Italian. “They started singing in Portuguese and I just thought, ‘I’m going to die now’.”

For Colloca, Mother’s Day is a time to count her blessings as a mother and daughter: “It’s also a day to spare a thought for those who are not mothers yet and trying to be, or who have been mothers.”

INGREDIENTS

• 4 eggs

• 170g caster sugar

• 150g firm ricotta

• 50ml olive oil

• 1 tsp vanilla paste

• 200g “00” plain flour

• 16g baking powder

• 2 tbsp Dutch cocoa powder

• Icing sugar, for dusting

METHOD

1 Preheat the oven to 170C. Grease and flour a bundt tin.

2 Using an electric stand mixer, beat the eggs and sugar for 1-2 minutes or until lightly and fluffy. Add the ricotta, olive oil and vanilla and beat until smooth. Add the flour and baking powder, and whisk until just combined. If the mixture is very runny, add a bit more flour, but keep in mind the batter is not too dense.

3 Place the cocoa in a small bowl and add 2 tablespoons water. Stir until well combined. Divide the batter between 2 bowls and stir the cocoa mixture into one of the bowls. Swirl 2 tablespoons of the plain mixture around the hole of the bundt tin, then swirl the cocoa mixture on top and repeat until both batters are finished. Don’t mix them together in the tin.

3 Bake for 35-40 minutes or until a skewer withdraws clean. Stand the cake to cool in the tin, then invert on a plate and dust with icing sugar.