Soft savory fritters to stuff, made with Greek yogurt. The pane dough fritters are a classic from my childhood snacks: my grandmother always made them when there was leftover dough from Sicilian semolina bread and she coated them in sugar to make them even more indulgent. A few days ago my son Alessio invited five classmates over, bringing a loud and hungry troupe to my table: do you know what I did? I remembered my childhood and my beloved snacks, so I got to work and prepared dough fritters a little less rustic than my grandmother’s, which I stuffed with grilled vegetables and cured meats. Let’s head to the kitchen — I’m sure you can’t wait to get your hands on the dough! Before we start cooking, I remind you that if you want to stay updated on all my recipes, you can follow my Facebook page (here) and my Instagram profile (here).
Also see:
- Difficulty: Very easy
- Cost: Very inexpensive
- Rest time: 3 Hours
- Preparation time: 20 Minutes
- Portions: for about 6 people
- Cooking methods: Frying
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: All seasons
Ingredients to make stuffed pane dough fritters
- 2 cups fine durum semolina
- 2 1/2 cups type '0' flour (or all-purpose flour)
- 1 1/4 cups water (warm)
- 3/4 cup Greek yogurt
- 2 1/4 tsp salt
- 1 1/4 tsp active dry yeast (or 1 oz fresh)
- mortadella (or other sliced cured meats and cheeses)
- to taste pumpkin (fried or grilled or other vegetables)
- burrata
- to taste extra virgin olive oil
Tools
- Stand mixer
- Frying pan
Preparation
To make these delicious stuffed fritters, collect the flours in the bowl of your food processor or stand mixer, add the water, the yeast and the sugar, mix roughly for a couple of minutes, then let rest for another 10 minutes. Then add the yogurt and the salt and knead until you obtain a dough that pulls away from the bowl, smooth, elastic and homogeneous. You can perform the same procedure by hand, but you will need to work the dough a bit longer. Turn the dough out onto the work surface, make a couple of folding turns, shape it into a ball and place it in a warm spot to rise until it has fully doubled in size. Times are indicative and if you want fluffy fritters you should always wait for proper fermentation. While the dough rises, you can also prepare the filling; as I said, I filled mine with mortadella, pumpkin and burrata. To prepare these tasty treats, slice the pumpkin after washing, peeling and removing seeds and fibers, brush each slice with oil and grill them on both sides until soft. Alternatively, cook them in the oven or in an air fryer for 10–15 minutes, turning halfway through, then brush with a bit of balsamic glaze for an extra touch of flavor. After about 2–3 hours from the start of preparation the dough should have doubled in volume; flour the work surface and, without deflating it too much, turn the dough out again. Roll it with a rolling pin without mistreating it and obtain a sheet about 3/8 inch thick, then use a pizza cutter to cut geometric shapes: I made diamond shapes about 2 3/8–2 3/4 inches per side.
Heat a pan with plenty of vegetable oil for frying — I always choose high-oleic sunflower oil (check the package for composition). Using a good oil with a high smoke point is essential to obtain a healthy fry. Immerse the dough pieces in hot oil (338°F) and cook for about 5 minutes, or until the fritters are golden. Retrieve them with a slotted spoon and place them on paper towels; once frying is finished, fill them straight away, because while these fritters are good cold they are wonderful hot or warm.
Split each diamond in half like a sandwich, fill with 5–6 slices of mortadella, add some grilled pumpkin and a little burrata, close and enjoy: you’ll taste something wonderful!
Storage and tips
Fritters are best enjoyed hot or at most the same day, just like bread, so I recommend making only the quantity you plan to consume.
If you want to stay updated on my recipes, follow me on:
Pinterest, YouTube, Twitter and TikTok.
From here, you can return to the HOME and discover new recipes!
