Neapolitan Graffe, traditional and Bimby recipe
They are a classic of Italian cuisine, or rather Neapolitan to be precise.
They are prepared during the Carnival celebrations or any festival, without worrying about the waistline.
Super soft, fried and sugared, the potatoes in the dough make these delights spectacular.
Everyone loves them, from adults to children, eaten warm just after being dipped in sugar.
Mmmmm what a delight, let’s start cooking.
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- Cost: Very economical
- Rest time: 3 Hours
- Preparation time: 25 Minutes
- Portions: 12 graffe
- Cooking methods: Frying
- Cuisine: Regional Italian
- Seasonality: Autumn, Winter and Spring, Carnival
- Energy 257.75 (Kcal)
- Carbohydrates 38.99 (g) of which sugars 5.70 (g)
- Proteins 6.88 (g)
- Fat 9.15 (g) of which saturated 3.43 (g)of which unsaturated 5.31 (g)
- Fibers 1.56 (g)
- Sodium 16.89 (mg)
Indicative values for a portion of 100 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
Let’s shop
- 10 oz potatoes
- 4 cups all-purpose flour
- 3.5 tbsps butter
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 7/16 cup whole milk
- 2 eggs
- lemon zest (1 organic lemon)
- 1/4 oz fresh yeast
- as needed vegetable oil
Neapolitan Graffe
Tools
What we need to make
- 1 Frying pan
- 1 Bowl
- 2 Cookie cutter of different sizes
- 1 parchment paper
Steps
Bring the butter to room temperature.
Wash the potatoes thoroughly and then cook them with their skins until they are cooked and soft when pierced with a fork.
Now drain the potatoes and mash them with a potato masher while they are very hot, then add the butter and mix until it melts
Warm the milk and dissolve the fresh yeast and sugar in it.
Mix and add the grated lemon zest, mixing well.
Add the whole eggs and mix with a fork.
As soon as the eggs are well incorporated into the mixture, gradually add the flour, mixing first with a fork and then
kneading with your hands to obtain a smooth and elastic dough.
It’s time to transfer the dough to a floured work surface and knead very well for 10 minutes until it becomes smooth.
Transfer the dough for the Neapolitan graffe into a bowl covered with a clean cloth or with plastic wrap and let it rise for 2 hours in a warm place.
After the time has passed, take the dough and deflate it with your hands, then press it with your palms until you reach a thickness of about an inch.
You can also perform this operation with a rolling pin, but be careful to smooth the dough delicately so as not to lose the leavening
In the meantime, cut squares from the parchment paper the size of your graffe.
Now take 2 cookie cutters or a glass and a bottle cap, which we will use to create the donut and the hole in the middle
Place all the donuts you have created on a baking sheet on top of the parchment paper squares and let them rise for another 50 minutes, covered with a cloth.
At the end of the rising, heat plenty of vegetable oil and, when it is very hot, fry one or two graffe at a time with the parchment paper, fry for a few moments and then flip them, removing the paper.
Continue until each donut is golden brown.
Then drain the Neapolitan graffe on absorbent paper and immediately roll them in granulated sugar so that it sticks.
Place the lemon zest and sugar in the bowl, pulverize: 10 sec./speed 10. Transfer to a bowl and set aside.
Place the milk and yeast in the bowl, dissolve: 1 min./98°F/speed 2.
Add the lemon-flavored sugar, butter, potatoes, all-purpose flour, and eggs, knead: Dough /3 min..
Transfer the dough for the Neapolitan graffe into a bowl covered with a clean cloth or with plastic wrap and let it rise for 2 hours in a warm place.
After the time has passed, take the dough and deflate it with your hands, then press it with your palms until you reach a thickness of about an inch.
You can also perform this operation with a rolling pin, but be careful to smooth the dough delicately so as not to lose the leavening.
Now take 2 cookie cutters or a glass and a bottle cap, which we will use to create the donut and the hole in the middle
Place all the donuts you have created on a baking sheet on top of the parchment paper squares and let them rise for another 50 minutes, covered with a cloth.
At the end of the rising, heat plenty of vegetable oil and, when it is very hot, fry one or two graffe at a time with the parchment paper, fry for a few moments and then flip them, removing the paper.
Continue until each donut is golden brown.
Then drain the Neapolitan graffe on absorbent paper and immediately roll them in granulated sugar so that it sticks.
Neapolitan Graffe are ready from Christmas to…
to Carnival.
Neapolitan Graffe.
Variations
You can add orange zest instead of lemon. If you want to add a kick to the outer sugar, add a pinch of cinnamon.
Storage
Neapolitan graffe are best when freshly fried, hot, or better yet, warm; letting them sit could mean the sugar gets absorbed by the oil.

