🇮🇹 Italian · Dessert
🍫 Salame di Cioccolato
Salame di Cioccolato
A playful no-bake Italian sweet shaped and sliced to resemble a real salami, combining crushed biscuits, cocoa, and butter, chilled until firm — a beloved family kitchen classic across the country.
Every Italian family seems to have their own version of salame di cioccolato, a no-cook, no-fuss dessert traditionally made by children helping in the kitchen, its rolled log shape and speckled interior deliberately mimicking a cured salami when sliced.
Ingredients
Equipment: Mixing bowl, Plastic wrap or parchment paper
- 250 g (8.8 oz) plain tea biscuits or digestive biscuits, roughly broken
- 150 g (⅔ cup) unsalted butter, softened
- 100 g (½ cup) granulated sugar
- 50 g (⅓ cup) cocoa powder
- 1 egg
- 50 g (⅓ cup) chopped walnuts or hazelnuts (optional)
- 2 tbsp rum or coffee liqueur (optional)
- Powdered sugar, for dusting
Method
- Cream the butter and sugar together until smooth.
- Beat in the cocoa powder and egg until well combined.
- Stir in the rum or liqueur if using.
- Fold in the broken biscuits and nuts, mixing until everything is evenly coated in the chocolate mixture.
- Turn the mixture out onto a sheet of plastic wrap or parchment paper.
- Shape into a log about 5–6cm in diameter, rolling the wrap tightly around it to compact and smooth the shape.
- Twist the ends of the wrap to secure and refrigerate for at least 4 hours, ideally overnight, until firm.
- Unwrap, dust generously with powdered sugar to mimic salami's characteristic white coating, and slice into rounds to serve.
Chef Tips
- Break the biscuits into irregular, varied-sized pieces rather than crumbs, which creates the characteristic marbled cross-section when sliced.
- Rolling the log tightly in plastic wrap while shaping helps it hold a neat, compact form.
- This is a wonderful no-bake project to make with children, given how simple and forgiving the process is.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
- Crushing the biscuits too finely, losing the distinctive marbled texture that makes this dessert visually resemble salami.
- Not chilling long enough, resulting in a log too soft to slice cleanly.
- Skipping the powdered sugar dusting, which is what completes the playful salami illusion.
Nutrition (per serving)
Health Benefits
- An indulgent treat best enjoyed occasionally, though nuts if included add some healthy fats.
Cultural Note
Salame di cioccolato is a beloved no-bake family tradition found throughout Italy, often one of the first desserts children learn to help make in the kitchen.
Storage & Serving
Storage: Refrigerate, wrapped, for up to 1 week.
Reheating: Not applicable; served chilled.
Serve with: Espresso