Rustic Bread Pudding Cake from Ticino

Switzerland’s southernmost canton, Ticino, abounds in traditional recipes. This bread-based cake is a common offering in a grotto, a type of rustic mountainside restaurant, usually outdoors, that serves only the old specialties of the region—sliced cured meats, polenta with a variety of homey toppings, and of course torta di pane for dessert. My version is based on one I have tasted many times at my favorite grotto, Da Pierino, in Cureggia in the mountains above Lugano.