History

Cleveland's cassata diverges from the Sicilian original (ricotta, candied fruit, marzipan). Italian-American bakers in Little Italy adapted it to local strawberries and dairy cream from the early 1900s, with Presti's (1903) and Corbo's (1958) defining the modern Cleveland-Italian wedding-and-Christmas cake.

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Common allergens: Gluten, Dairy, Egg

Make it at home

Yield 10Hands-on 1 hr 30 minTotal 3 hrDifficulty Intermediate

Ingredients

  • Four 23cm yellow sponge cake layers, baked and cooled
  • 600ml double cream, very cold
  • 100g icing sugar
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 500g vanilla pastry cream, chilled
  • 500g fresh strawberries, hulled and sliced
  • 120g strawberry jelly or glaze, warmed
  • 120ml simple syrup, light

Method

  1. Brush each cooled sponge layer with simple syrup until just damp, not soaked.
  2. Whip the cold double cream with the icing sugar and vanilla to firm peaks, do not over-beat.
  3. On a cake stand place layer one, spread with pastry cream then a single layer of sliced strawberries.
  4. Top with layer two, spread with whipped cream then more sliced strawberries.
  5. Repeat with layers three and four, alternating fillings, ending whipped cream on top.
  6. Cover the top with the remaining sliced strawberries, brush with warm strawberry glaze, refrigerate 2 hours before serving.

Tip from the editors. If you can't find pastry cream, fold half the whipped cream into 200g mascarpone for a quick substitute.

Where to eat cleveland-style cassata cake

Cleveland-style cassata cake in Cleveland

Presti's Bakery ★ 4.7

$ BakeryItalian-American pastries and breadsLittle ItalyWalk-in only

Presti's Bakery on Mayfield Road in Little Italy since 1903, one of Cleveland's oldest bakeries, anchors the Cleveland-style cassata cake tradition.

Worth the queueCassata cake

Directions

Corbo's Bakery ★ 4.6

$ BakeryItalian-American pastriesLittle ItalyWalk-in only

Corbo's Bakery on Mayfield Road in Little Italy since 1958, the family-owned bakery known for cassata cake and cannoli, has expanded to a full Italian menu.

Worth the queueCassata cake

Directions

Michael Angelo's Bakery ★ 4.4

$ BakeryItalian-American wedding cake and cassataBroadview HeightsWalk-in only

Michael Angelo's Bakery on Broadview Road in Broadview Heights, an Italian-American bakery since 2000, runs cassata cake, cannoli and a 2026 spring food menu.

Worth the queueCassata cake

Directions

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