Frittelle di Carnevale – Carnival Fried Pastry Treats

Traveling through Italy in the months of January and February Carnival sweets appear in most local shops and bars. Many are similar, fried dough with a hint of grappa, apples and or lemon. They are a bit greasy and covered with powdered sugar. I would suggest using a napkin as a makeshift bib before biting into one of these babies otherwise all will know about your sweet discretion. Without a doubt they represent Carnival. They are fun, tasty sweet and just the sight invokes thoughts of dinners, costumes and elaborate parties.


Carnival is a holiday for kids of all ages, perhaps this is the reason I enjoy it so much. It may be the thoughts of my girls begging to stop and get a thick hot chocolate with these fried pastries on the way to school that makes me stop and enjoy this tradition every year. It may be that they are just sweet enough or the fun sound they make as they crunch under your teeth. It may even be the contortions necessary to avoid being covered with powdered sugar but whatever the reason the sweets of Carnival are a must during any visit in this period.

Ingredients:

3 cups all-purpose Flour
3 Eggs
1 cup warm Milk
6 tbsp Sugar
½ tsp Vanilla
4 oz Raisins
1 package (8 g) active dry Yeast
Olive Oil to fry with
2 Apples grated
1 tbsp grated Lemon peel
a pinch of salt
1/2 cup of Grappa

Preparation:

Place the raisins in a bowl and fill with water. Let the raisins soak for 15 minutes and then drain.

Dissolve the yeast in the flour. Let the mixture rest for about 10 minutes.

Place the flour, salt, and sugar in large mixing bowl. Add the eggs, vanilla, grated lemon peel, grated apples, yeast-milk and grappa. Stir the mixture together well with a wooden spoon.

The dough will be elastic and a bit sticky. Knead in the raisins.

Cover with plastic wrap or a damp towel and let the dough rise for 30-45 minutes.

Over medium low heat bring the oil to temperature in a large skillet, Dutch oven, or fryer.

On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough into a rectangle about ¼ to ½ inch thick. With a pizza knife cut the dough into diamonds.

Fry until golden on each side, drain on a wire rack or absorbent paper. Place in a serving dish and cover with powdered sugar.

Cakes Available online

Tags: Holiday Traditions Carnival Italian Recipes Trentino Italain Holidays Marti Gras Travel Italy