This classic Italian hazelnut cake recipe creates an easy, aromatic dessert. Great on its own, but even better with a spoonful of homemade gelato or chocolate-hazelnut spread!

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As much as I love looking at and making fancy layer cakes for birthdays, on a day-to-day basis, I usually gravitate toward humble-looking simple cakes that come together quickly. Yes, I’m saying “on a day-to-day basis” because I do believe you shouldn’t wait for special occasions to bake a cake. The most satisfying cakes are often the ones you make “just because.”

It’s no secret I love cakes that use ground nuts: nuts add a lovely, mellow flavor to cakes and a nice crumbly texture that stays moist for days—improves, even. Also, ingredients that increases the nutritional value of a cake? I’m in.

One of my go-to nut-based cakes is Torta di Nocciole, or Italian Hazelnut Cake. This humble-looking cake originates from Piedmont, a Northern Italian province believed to produce some of the best hazelnuts in the world. Piedmont is where a quintessential Italian flavor was created—gianduja, an addictive combination of chocolate and hazelnuts you can use in fine chocolates, gelato, spreads, and much more—and also the birthplace of the world-famous chocolate hazelnut spread, Nutella.

Torta di Nocciole is rich-tasting, hearty, and comforting. In Piedmont, hazelnut cake is a fall and winter treat: a way to use up excess nuts at the end of the season, according to Italy-based food writer Emiko Davies. I make Italian Hazelnut Cake year-round, though: while it’s true that it may not be the best cake to serve on a hot summer day ( were created for such days!), I wouldn’t ever say no to a slice topped with gelato, a spoonful of whipped cream, and some fresh fruits.

Keep this Italian Hazelnut Cake in your arsenal of go-to recipes: Torta di Nocciole is an effortlessly elegant dessert that looks humble but makes everyone swoon and ask for more. Enjoy a slice for an instant mood-lifting effect, add a spoonful of homemade chocolate hazelnut spread, or slather with gianduja ganache when you want to impress.

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Italian Hazelnut Cake Recipe Video

See how easy it is to make Torta di Nocciole! My short video includes instructions on roasting and peeling raw hazelnuts.

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Helpful Tips for Making Italian Hazelnut Cake

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Always store unused nuts in the fridge

Nuts are expensive, so you should treat them with extra care. All nuts will go bad when not properly stored, but hazelnuts are especially sensitive to spoilage. Nuts will turn rancid within a couple of weeks when stored at room temperature (such as in a pantry.) You shouldn’t store nuts in the freezer, which is too harsh an environment. Refrigerator freezers are not made for lengthy storage and cause freezer burn, which damages food and renders it inedible. Unused nuts should be refrigerated in airtight containers: this will keep them fresh for months.

Make sure to measure out hazelnuts properly

Hazelnuts vary in size, so it can be hard to get the quantity right when fitting them into a measuring cup. To correctly measure out whole roasted hazelnuts in a measuring cup, fit as many as possible to fill the cup without heaping it. When looking at the side of the cup, you shouldn’t see nuts bulging over the cup’s rim: in fact, you should be able to set a square of paper flat over the cup. The most precise way of measuring nuts is by weight, so I’m also providing the weight measurements in the recipe below.

Switch things up by using different flavorings in the cake

Because I’m a born citrus lover and orange and hazelnut is one of my favorite flavor combinations, I like to add orange zest to this Italian Hazelnut Cake. The sweet aroma of orange zest adds an extra dimension to the flavor and texture of this cake, which only gets better as days pass. You can play with flavors in this Italian Hazelnut Cake, though!

Here are some substitute ideas for the orange zest:

• • 1 tbsp (15 ml) finely grated lemon zest (as recommended by the Italian food bible, The Silver Spoon), OR
  • 1/4 cup (60 ml) cooled espresso, mixed into the wet ingredients after the eggs (as recommended by cookbook author Emiko Davies), OR
  • 1/4 cup (60 m / 43 g) finely chopped semisweet chocolate, folded into the finished batter (as recommended by Italian food legend Lidia Bastianich), OR
  • 2 tbsp (30 ml / 10 g) sifted cocoa powder, whisked into the flour and hazelnut mixture.

Make Italian Hazelnut Cake Ahead of Time

Italian Hazelnut Cake is sturdy and gets better with age, which means it’s an excellent make-ahead dessert. Once the cake is completely cool, store it under a cake dome for up to 3 days, wrap it tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate for up to 1 week, or freeze for up to 1 month.

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