Recipe: Cóc de Brossat

If you spend any time in the Terres de l'Ebre in the southern-most corner of Catalunya, you'll no doubt discover its many natural wonders. From the medieval village of Miravet in Ribera d'Ebre, to the rugged mountain terrain of Els Ports Natural Park, to the wetlands of Ebro Delta Natural Park and the cave paintings in Ulldecona, there is much to see and explore.

And, like every region it has its own unique culinary delights to be discovered as well—just one of which is its cócs (cakes—called coques in central Catalunya). Bakery shelves throughout the region are laden with these lovely artisanal cakes of all kinds. Depending on the season, you'll find honey cakes, mató cakes, apple cakes, cherry cakes, orange cakes, crema catalana cakes, bittersweet apple cakes and more.

A Southern Catalan Tradition

The cóc de brossat is originally from Tortosa. So, what is brossat? In southern Catalunya it's what they call mató cheese (more on that later). This surprisingly light and airy cake—not to be confused with a tarta de brossat from the Islas Baleares, which is more like a cheesecake—uses simple Mediterranean ingredients. There are many versions, some calling for a great deal more cheese on top, some using anise instead of lemon to flavor the base, and others using orange instead.

After doing a good bit of research I settled on this recipe, (modified slightly from one I found at lamardecocina.blogspot.com) because it seemed simple and straightforward. To say that I was pleased with the results would be an understatement. It far exceeded my expectations.

I love the light, delicate crumb, the sweet cheese topping and the bright lemon flavor. When strawberry season comes around, I plan to top it with fresh strawberries. And, a little whipped cream wouldn't be totally crazy, would it? Though sauteed apples and vanilla ice cream sound good too...

INGREDIENTS

• 250 g all purpose flour
• 2 Tbsp baking powder
• pinch of salt
• 3 large eggs
• 200 g powdered sugar
• 125 g plain, unsweetened full-fat Greek yogurt (or unsweetened, full-fat regular yogurt)
• 120 ml extra virgin olive oil, mild flavored*
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 3 Tbsp lemon juice
• zest of two lemons
• 250 g of mató cheese (or ricotta, see note below)
• 80-100 g pine nuts, sliced raw almonds or chopped raw hazelnuts (optional)

METHOD

1. Bring all ingredients to room temperature.
2. Line a 24 x 33 cm (9 x 13 inches) pan with parchment paper and preheat oven to 180°C (350°F).
3. Mix together flour, baking powder and salt in a small bowl and set aside.
4. Separate the eggs. When separating them, make sure that you don't get any of the yolk in the whites, or they absolutely won't whip—no matter how hard you try. I always use two small bowls to separate them—one for the white and one for the yolk. Place the egg white in a medium mixing bowl (preferably one made of glass, ceramic or stainless steel) before separating the next one. Separating each egg individually ensures that you don't "contaminate" the rest of the egg whites if you happen to break a yolk in the process.
5. Place yolks in a medium to large bowl and set aside.
6. Beat the egg whites with a hand mixer on medium-low speed. When they begin to foam up increase speed to medium. When they begin to expand and hold soft peaks, increase speed to high and gradually add half the powdered sugar (100 g). Continue to beat until the egg whites are glossy and hold a firm peak that doesn't fold back onto itself. Set aside—we'll add the whites in near the end.
7. Next, we return to the egg yolks; add the rest of the powdered sugar (100 g) to the bowl with the yolks and beat until lightened in color.
8. Set aside your mixer and, using a rubber spatula, mix the yogurt, olive oil, vanilla, lemon zest and lemon juice into the yolk mixture.
9. Gently fold the flour mixture into the yolk mixture until just incorporated, making sure to scrape the bottom and sides of the bowl. The batter will be very thick.
10. Finally, add the whipped egg whites to the mixture. Fold them very gently into the batter, again making sure to scrape the bottom and sides of the bowl. Don't over mix. You don't want large pockets of meringue, but a few streaks here and there are fine.
11. Scrape the batter into the prepared baking pan and gently spread it evenly across the pan with the spatula. The batter will still be quite thick. Resist the urge to tap the pan against the counter to level it out—you don't want to burst all of those lovely air bubbles you worked so hard to create.
12. Lastly, spoon the mató cheese on top of the batter and then sprinkle the nuts on top, if using. Place cake in the bottom third of the oven and bake for 30-35 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.

Allow to cool completely on a rack before cutting. Once cooled, serve sprinkled with a bit of powdered sugar.

What Is Mató & What Can I Substitute for It?

Mató, also sometimes referred to as brossat or Brull, is a Catalan fresh cheese traditionally made with goat's milk. But what you find available in supermarkets today is usually made with cow's milk; it is a sweet, unsalted, unfermented cheese that has a slightly grainy texture, but is smooth and spreadable. Here in Catalunya it is most often eaten for desert as mel i mató: a scoop of mató cheese is drizzled with honey and topped with toasted walnuts and raisins.

Don't worry if you can't find mató cheese; it can be difficult to find outside of Catalunya. You can use ricotta cheese in its place; it is similar enough in texture, flavor and fat content to work wonderfully in this recipe. (Most mató found at the supermarket is 10% fat and ricotta is around 13% fat.)

*Does it Matter What Kind of Olive Oil?

Yes. For everyday cooking I like the strong, earthy and intense flavors of picual olive oil. But the picual variety would overpower the delicate flavors in this cake. For baking, I recommend a fruity and light extra virgin arbequina olive oil.

Notes

The key to this cake is the meringue. The egg yolks and whites are added separately, with the whites whipped until glossy and firm and then folded in at the end. When whipping the egg whites, make sure that there are no traces of oil in the bowl or on the beaters. Also, using a glass, ceramic or stainless steel bowl is recommended because plastic can hold traces of oil. Even the tiniest bit of fat will prevent the egg whites from whipping up into meringue, and without it your cake will be a sad, dense little concoction that can hardly be called a cake. But, don't let that scare you. Just be careful when separating your eggs, whip the whites first and you should be good to go!