Family Style Food

Preheat oven to 350 (175 C) degrees. Coat the sides of an 8-inch springform pan with olive oil or softened butter and line the bottom with a piece of parchment.
Put the walnuts and sugar in a food processor and grind until fine crumbs form. Add the chocolate and zest and pulse a few times to chop the chocolate into small chips.
Whip the egg whites and salt in a mixer with the whisk attachment until they form stiff peaks.
Sift the flour over the egg whites and fold it in gently. Add the walnut mixture in 2 or 3 additions and fold it in carefully (the volume will decrease slightly. Stir in the nocino or brandy, if using.
Transfer the batter to the pan. Bake on the middle oven rack 30–35 minutes, until the cake is puffed and a toothpick inserted in the middle emerges without crumbs but with a little melted chocolate.

Cool in the pan 10 minutes before releasing the sides of the pan; invert onto a rack, remove the parchment paper. Turn the cake right side up and cool completely.
Sift cocoa powder over the cake before slicing and serving, with a side of whipped cream of you like.