‘Pasticciotto’ cake from Puglia

Method:

Place the flour and sugar in a bowl and make a well. In the middle, place the lard, baking powder, vanilla pod seeds and salt. Rub with your fingertips until you get a breadcrumb-like mixture, add the egg and continue to knead quickly until you get an even dough. Leave to stand in the fridge for at least 30 minutes, covered in cling film.
For the custard, whip the egg yolks with the sugar, add the vanilla seeds and the corn starch. In the meantime, bring the milk to the boil in a pan with the cream and the gorgonzola. When boiling, add the whipped egg mixture to the milk and cook for around one minute, whisking continuously. Cool the cream down quickly in a bain-marie using water and ice, or in a domestic blast freezer, after covering it with cling film.
Roll out half of the shortcrust pastry to a thickness of 5 mm and cover the base of the previously greased and floured mould. Pierce with a fork. Fill 2/3 of the mould with the custard, sprinkle with the cherries and cover with the other half of the shortcrust pastry. Fold the edges over, sealing them carefully.
Brush the surface with a beaten egg.
Bake at 180°C for around 40 minutes, until the surface becomes golden brown.
Leave the cake to cool down, sprinkle with icing sugar and serve.