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Whole torta paradiso on a cake stand dusted with powdered sugar, one slice cut to show the fine pale crumb

Torta Paradiso: The Classic Pavia Butter Cake

Torta paradiso is a classic Lombard butter cake made with potato starch and egg yolks for a fine, tender crumb. It bakes in 30 minutes and keeps well for three days.
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Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Total Time 1 hour
Servings: 8 slices
Calories: 310
Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients
  

  • 150 g unsalted butter, softened European-style preferred, genuinely soft at room temperature
  • 150 g powdered sugar (zucchero a velo), sifted plus extra for dusting the finished cake
  • 4 egg yolks from large eggs, at room temperature
  • 75 g plain flour (00 or all-purpose)
  • 75 g potato starch (fecola di patate) or cornstarch as a substitute
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 1/2 vanilla bean seeds scraped, or 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
  • 1 lemon lemon zest finely grated, optional but traditional
  • 1 pinch fine salt
  • as needed butter and flour for the pan to grease and dust the springform pan

Method
 

  1. Heat the oven to 170 C / 340 F, fan off. Grease a 22 cm springform pan with butter and dust lightly with flour, tapping out the excess.
  2. Beat the softened butter and sifted powdered sugar together with an electric mixer on medium-high speed for 5 minutes, until the mixture is pale, fluffy, and noticeably increased in volume.
  3. Add the vanilla seeds (or extract), lemon zest, and salt, and beat for 30 seconds more.
  4. Add the egg yolks one at a time, beating well after each addition until fully incorporated before adding the next. The batter should look smooth and creamy.
  5. Sift the plain flour, potato starch, and baking powder together into a separate bowl.
  6. Add the sifted dry ingredients in two additions, folding gently with a flexible spatula each time until just combined. Do not overmix.
  7. Spoon the batter into the prepared pan and spread it level with the spatula. The batter is thick.
  8. Bake for 28 to 32 minutes, until the top is pale golden, the edges have pulled away from the pan, and a skewer inserted in the center comes out clean.
  9. Remove from the oven and let the cake rest in the pan on a cooling rack for 10 minutes before unclipping and removing the ring.
  10. Cool completely, then dust generously with powdered sugar through a fine sieve just before serving.

Notes

For a deeper vanilla flavor, rest the scraped vanilla bean in the butter overnight before creaming. Remove the pod before mixing.