This recipe requires an ice-cream machine.

To make the doughnuts

500g plain flour

15g dry yeast

120g sugar

6 egg yolks

300ml milk

80g softened butter

Cinnamon sugar*

Pinch of salt

Zest of one orange *

Made by combining half cinnamon and half sugar.

Add the flour, yeast, sugar, salt and orange zest to a bowl and combine in a mixer with a dough hook attachment. Once combined, add the egg yolks and milk. Continue mixing for about 20 minutes.

Add the softened butter and knead. Place in a warm place to rise. Once the dough has risen, knead the dough again and allow to rise a little more.

Roll the dough into 30g balls.

Fry the doughnuts in a deep fryer at 160°C for 8 minutes. Remove with a slotted spoon and roll in cinnamon sugar.

To make the cassata ice-cream

400ml milk

220g caster sugar

3 egg yolks

250g ricotta

150ml cream

1 tblsp dark rum

Using a kitchen mixer, whisk the egg yolks and sugar until white and fluffy.

Put the milk in a pot on the stove and bring to the boil. Pour the hot milk into the egg mixture, continuously whisking to ensure it doesn’t curdle.

Put the mix back into the pot and heat over a low/medium heat, continuously stirring with a wooden spoon until the mixture thickens. Strain the mixture into a bowl. Place the bowl over ice in a cool place. Once cooled, mix in the ricotta, then the rum and churn using an ice-cream machine.

To finish

60g candied fruit

60g candied cedro, chopped*

60g chocolate, chopped

2 prickly pears, peeled and sliced

Mix the fruit, cedro, chocolate and prickly pears through the ice cream.

Cut the doughnuts in half using a serrated knife and fill the centre with ice-cream

Garnish with sliced prickly pears to serve.

*Cedro is a large fruit grown in Italy’s south. Candied cedro can often be found in Mediterranean specialty stores. If you have trouble finding this ingredient, it can be replaced with extra candied fruit.