The Baked Saint Joseph’s Zeppole are among my Paciccio’s favorite desserts. A dessert that is easy to prepare overall, but requires some small precautions during preparation. Preparing the Choux Pastry is not difficult, you just need to give the dough time to cool before adding the eggs. Work the dough one egg at a time until the mixture is smooth, without lumps, and with the right creaminess. Father’s Day is approaching, March 19 is just around the corner, and this dessert is perfect for the occasion!
In the recipe, I will try to explain the procedures as best as I can. You can then make the Saint Joseph’s Zeppole either in the sweet version, as in this case with cream and grated chocolate, or in the savory version of savory zeppole that you can find on the blog. Indeed, the dough is very versatile, and you can also use it to make Profiteroles with Strawberries or for Profiteroles with cream or chocolate.
Of course, to prepare the custard, you can use Grandma Licia’s recipe that you can always find here on my food blog: Grandma’s Custard made at home, or you can purchase cream preparations to which only milk at room temperature needs to be added.
Before moving on to the recipe, I would like to remind you that you can become a follower of the Facebook fan page of Le Ricette di Bea or follow the Instagram profile by searching for Le Ricette di Bea.
Below you will find other recipes that you can make with Choux Pastry or sweet recipes for Father’s Day:
- Difficulty: Easy
- Cost: Economical
- Rest time: 30 Minutes
- Preparation time: 10 Minutes
- Portions: 16 Zeppole
- Cooking methods: Oven
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: All seasons
- Energy 277.83 (Kcal)
- Carbohydrates 24.76 (g) of which sugars 12.79 (g)
- Proteins 8.93 (g)
- Fat 16.44 (g) of which saturated 9.71 (g)of which unsaturated 6.59 (g)
- Fibers 0.62 (g)
- Sodium 103.40 (mg)
Indicative values for a portion of 40 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 for 16 Baked Saint Joseph’s Zeppole
- 7 oz oz butter
- 1.75 cups cups water
- 2 cups cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp tsp salt
- 6 eggs (medium size at room temperature, you might need 7)
- as needed chocolate (better if it's a bar as we will grate it)
- as needed Nutella®
- 1 egg
- 2 egg yolks
- cups sugar
- cups all-purpose flour
- 2 cups cups milk (at room temperature)
- 1 vial vanilla (or vanilla seeds)
Tools to prepare Saint Joseph’s Zeppole and Choux Pastry
- 1 Pot
- 1 Wooden spoon
- 1 Piping bag
- 1 Spoon
- 3 Baking trays
- 1 Oven
- 1 Stand mixer
- 3 Parchment paper
- 1 Grater
- 2 Teaspoons
Never ever make choux pastry with whisks or a mixer, if you don’t have a stand mixer, take a bowl or large steel pot, a wooden spoon, and proceed as follows: work the choux pastry after adding the flour to the water where we dissolved the butter, adding only one egg at a time, possibly beaten in a little bowl with a fork. With the wooden spoon, you will combine it with the mixture until fully absorbed, only then can you add the next egg.
Recipe Steps
Start the basic preparation by melting the butter with the water and salt in a pot. When it reaches a boil, turn off the heat and add the previously sifted flour all at once. Now, stir vigorously with a wooden spoon until the mixture starts to detach on its own from the sides of the pot.
Let the choux pastry cool for at least twenty minutes. Once well-cooled, you can either continue kneading with the wooden spoon in the pot or take the stand mixer. I, of course, took my beautiful stand mixer! Kneading by hand and with a wooden spoon is hard work. So I poured the dough into the mixer bowl and started at the minimum speed.
Turn on the oven in static mode at 340 to 355 degrees Fahrenheit and proceed with the recipe. Start by breaking the eggs, adding them one at a time, and working until each egg is fully absorbed before adding another. As specified in the ingredient list, compared to the recipe I had read, I used only 6 eggs as they were medium-sized. If the mixture is still not fluid enough, then add the seventh egg. At this point, we have a stringy mixture but not too liquid, free of lumps.
Now line three baking trays with parchment paper. Why three? Because my zeppole are nice and big, and I need to space them out during baking. Each tray will then be baked one at a time so that it can be placed in the center of the oven. Therefore, I didn’t create all the zeppole at once, only 6 at a time.
Take the piping bag, use a spoon to transfer the choux pastry into the bag, and start forming the zeppole by making medium-sized baskets. I made six zeppole on each baking sheet; if you want mini zeppole instead, you can make smaller nests and get more.
We are now ready for the first bake. Bake each tray with the zeppole for about 30 minutes. You will see the profiteroles puff up and turn golden during baking. Once baking is complete, transfer them to a rack to cool. Finish baking all the zeppole this way. Then let all the profiteroles cool before filling them with cream.
Then cut each zeppola in half horizontally, pour the custard into another piping bag, and fill the inside of the zeppole. Add cream on top as well, as shown in the photos. Grate the milk chocolate bar with the help of a hand grater. Then take the jar of Nutella, use two teaspoons to form small balls, which you will place in the center of the zeppole as if they were cherries. We are now ready to serve the zeppole; of course, you can also add powdered sugar if you like.
I can only Wish Happy Father’s Day to all dads who read my blog, that your children love you as much as I love my Paciccio, and above all, enjoy your meal! See you in the next recipe!
Variations:
I proposed a delicious variation to the classic zeppole with cherries, and I hope you like this chocolate alternative. Of course, you can also opt for a zeppola filled with pistachio cream or coffee cream. I have tasted different flavors over the years, but my favorites remain these chocolate ones; it might be that in my family, we are Nutella addicts.
Storage:
You can store the Saint Joseph’s Zeppole in a dessert container if you don’t fill them immediately with cream. If you have already added the custard, you must close them in a fridge container and store them for a maximum of one day.
