I love sweets made with corn flour. For this reason, one day, I started browsing the Internet looking for some cookies made precisely with this flour. That’s how I discovered zaleti, delicious cookies typical of the Veneto region. However, I immediately realized that everyone makes them in their own way. Some put grappa, others another liqueur, or nothing at all. Some use milk, while others don’t even consider it. Some add pine nuts, and some don’t. Some measure the white and yellow flour equally, and some use more of the latter than the former. Some use whole eggs and some only yolks. In short, there’s everything. That’s why I decided to call them zaleti my way. Yes… in the end, I came up with a version… let’s say a ‘personal’ one. What I can tell you, however, is that they are exquisite; rustic sweets of incredible delicacy. I can only recommend you try them as soon as possible.
Other sweets with corn flour that might interest you:
- Difficulty: Easy
- Cost: Economical
- Preparation time: 25 Minutes
- Portions: 17 Pieces
- Cooking methods: Oven, Microwave
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: All seasons
Ingredients for 17 zaleti
- 1.76 oz raisins
- 7 tbsp butter
- 2 eggs (medium)
- 6 tbsp sugar
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 3/4 cup fine cornmeal
- 1 pinch salt
- baking powder (the tip of a teaspoon)
- zest of half a lemon (untreated)
- 1.76 oz pine nuts
- powdered sugar (for dusting)
Tools
- 2 Small bowls
- 2 Bowls
- Electric beaters
- 1 Hand whisk
- 1 Spatula
- 1 Lemon zester
- 2 Baking sheets
Preparation of the zaleti
Soak the raisins in warm water for at least 20 minutes.
Melt the butter in a double boiler or microwave and let it cool.
In a bowl, place the eggs with the sugar.
In a second bowl, put the two flours, a pinch of salt, the baking powder (the tip of a teaspoon), the lemon zest taken with a citrus zester, and mix well with a small hand whisk.
Using electric beaters, whip the eggs with the sugar until you obtain a light and fluffy mixture.
Add the melted butter and beat again.
Then, add the dry ingredients in several additions incorporating them with a spatula.
Finally, add the well-drained raisins and pine nuts. I recommend setting aside some raisins and pine nuts to place on the surface of the cookies after shaping them. Mix carefully to perfectly combine all the ingredients.
At this point, take small amounts of dough and make mounds on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. You will need two baking sheets. I used one sheet and a silicone mat placed on the oven rack.
Pat the dough mounds with your fingers until they form a round shape. Distribute the reserved pine nuts and raisins on the surface. I adopted this system for a purely aesthetic reason: I wanted the raisins and pine nuts to be visible on the surface. If you mix everything together, these ingredients might not be visible because they are completely covered by the dough. Some cookies might end up just yellow. And I didn’t like that! Of course, you can proceed as you prefer.
Bake the cookies in a preheated fan oven at 350°F for about 18-20 minutes. The fan setting allowed me to bake all the cookies at once, avoiding two batches. If you use conventional heat, raise the temperature to 355°F and bake for the same time. However, in this case, you’ll need to bake one sheet at a time.
Remove the cookies from the oven, let them cool completely before handling and dusting them with powdered sugar. Enjoy! Paola.
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