When I write a traditional Puglian recipe, it is always an emotion for me, the memories of myself as a little girl waiting for Christmas and all the good things this holiday brought inevitably resurface, as in this case. Today, a recipe that truly makes me proud because it is very successful, THE PERFECT AND CRUMBLY PUGLIAN CARTELLATE OR CARTEDDATE. The intense aroma of hot oil and white wine invades the Puglian tables, the unmistakable sweetness of honey and vincotto creates a true masterpiece. Vincotto comes from the simple and slow reduction of fresh grape must until it reaches the consistency of a syrup with a perfectly round and sweet taste suitable for making desserts and drinks. My recipe is a family one; my grandmother made them this way, and all the grandchildren and children couldn’t resist, and the cartellate disappeared in a fraction of a second. Every family then holds its own recipe; some heat the wine together with the oil and let them rest overnight before frying. This procedure can be found here. I have tried both versions, and honestly, I prefer this one, both for the preparation times and because when heating the wine as well, the taste of the wine was too strong. But if you prefer, follow this procedure. Their preparation, as well as their shape, are linked to the Christian tradition: the circular shape, made of layers of curled dough, is said to recall the swaddling clothes in which Baby Jesus was wrapped or the crown of thorns of the Crucifixion. They are also called crustele, cartiddate (Puglia), crispelle (Calabria), and crispedde or roses (Basilicata), and they are preserved for a long time by storing them in closed containers. Making them may seem complicated, perhaps a bit laborious, but believe me, it’s absolutely worth investing the effort; it will be well rewarded! So I recommend you try them! But let’s get to our recipe

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The Perfect and Crumbly Puglian Cartellate or Carteddate

Difficulty: Easy
Cost: Very economical
Rest time: 12 Hours
Preparation time: 2 Hours
Portions: 30 cartellate
Cooking methods: Frying
Cuisine: Italian
Seasonality: Winter

90.73 Kcal

calories per serving

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Energy 90.73 (Kcal)
Carbohydrates 13.73 (g) of which sugars 2.08 (g)
Proteins 1.83 (g)
Fat 3.23 (g) of which saturated 0.44 (g)of which unsaturated 0.00 (g)
Fibers 0.37 (g)
Sodium 0.72 (mg)

Indicative values for a portion of 30 g processed in an automated way starting from the nutritional information available on the CREA^* and FoodData Central^** databases. It is not food and / or nutritional advice.

^* CREATES Food and Nutrition Research Center: https://www.crea.gov.it/alimenti-e-nutrizione https://www.alimentinutrizione.it ^** U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2019. https://fdc.nal.usda.gov

Ingredients

4 cups all-purpose flour
7 tbsps extra virgin olive oil (hot)
1 mandarins
4 tbsps sugar
2/3 cup white wine
to taste honey (hot)
to taste vincotto (fig)

Tools

Pasta Machines
Frying Pans
Fluted Wheels

Steps

First, heat the olive oil and flavor it with mandarin peels. (The mandarin peels are optional; you can omit them; they are just for fragrance)
In a bowl, combine the flour and sugar
Add the hot flavored oil
Start mixing with a fork
Continue kneading with your hands
Add the white wine (if you want, also heat the white wine; I prefer it not hot because the wine taste is too strong, but traditionally it is also heated)
Transfer the dough to the work surface
Knead vigorously
Until you get a smooth dough
Cover with a cloth and let it rest for 30 minutes.
Use a pasta machine to make a very thin sheet
Cut strips approximately 20 inches long and 1 inch wide with a fluted wheel
Start pinching the strip
Pinch at a distance of 1.5 inches from each other
Roll it into a spiral, pinching a few sides to hold it in place as a rose.
Make sure to join the final part well to prevent the cartellate from opening during frying. Let the cartellate rest overnight.
Fry in plenty of peanut oil.
When the cartellate is golden, drain it and place it on paper towels with the decorated side down so that the oil inside the holes drains out and the cartellate is dry
At this point, heat the honey
pass the cartellate in the honey, turning them over to distribute it well
Do the same with the hot vincotto.
Serve our Puglian cartellate. If you like, decorate with sprinkles