Nome in dialetto In local dialect
È il dolce reggiano più antico le cui origini si possono datare intorno alla seconda metà del secolo tredicesimo. Tipico del periodo natalizio, nacque a Brescello. La ricetta originale fu lasciata in eredità a Luigi Benelli che ancora oggi la fabbrica, da don Palazzi, il primo a proporla in pasticceria.
Il nome deriva presumibilmente dalla schiuma di zucchero che forma il rivestimento superiore.
One of Reggio Emilia’s oldest desserts, its origins date back to the second half of the 13th century. This typical Christmas dessert was first made in Brescello. Luigi Benelli was entrusted with the original recipe by Father Palazzi – the first person to introduce the spongata into pastry making – and to this day he makes it according to the traditional recipe. It is presumed that the name derives from the sugar foam which forms on the upper crust.

30 kg dry bread; 5 kg walnuts; 1500 g sultanas; 5 kg pine nuts; 200 g candied fruits; 1 kg ground cinnamon. Leave the ingredients to macerate for a few days, then prepare a shortcrust pastry casing, fill with a layer of the mixture, approximately 2 cm thick. Cover with a layer of shortcrust pastry and bake for approximately 30 minutes in the oven at 180° C. After baking, when the cake has cooled down, dust generously with icing sugar.
Iori Galluzzi M.A.–Iori N., Breve manuale del mangiar reggiano, Reggio Emilia, N. Iori, 1985, pag. 148