Rame di Napoli with pistachio, a more modern take on the traditional Catania Rame di Napoli with chocolate, which together with “nzuddi”, bersaglieri, Regina cookies, quince paste, mostarda and Totò, are part of the broad ensemble of Dolci dei morti and the November 1st tradition. Linked to the “All Saints” celebration and the day of remembrance of the departed, they are present throughout autumn in every bar, pastry shop, bakery and grocery in Sicily and make a pleasant, spiced snack to enjoy alone or with company. Let’s make them together using a delicious homemade pistachio green chocolate which is the best recipe for the glaze of Rame di Napoli with pistachio — you’ll see these will make you fall in love at the first bite! Before we go to the kitchen and roll up our sleeves, as always, if you want to keep up with all my recipes you can follow my Facebook page (here) and my Instagram profile (here).
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- Difficulty: Easy
- Cost: Budget-friendly
- Rest time: 20 Minutes
- Preparation time: 2 Hours
- Portions: 40
- Cooking methods: Oven
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: Autumn, Winter
Ingredients to make Rame di Napoli with pistachio
- 4 cups all-purpose flour (00)
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 2/3 cup lard (strutto)
- 1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 3.5 oz almonds (toasted, unsalted)
- 5.3 oz dry biscuits (crushed; about 1.5 cups crushed)
- 2 eggs (large)
- 2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 6 ground cloves
- 1 tbsp candied orange (finely chopped or use orange marmalade, generous amount)
- 1 packet vanillin (or 1 tablespoon vanilla extract)
- 2.3 tsp baker's ammonia (ammonium carbonate) (for pastries)
- 1.7 cups milk (about)
- 21 oz pistachio chocolate (glaze for the Rame di Napoli with pistachio)
- to taste pistachio crumbs
- to taste pistachio spread
Tools
- Baking sheets
- Bowls
- Oven
- Piping bag
- Round piping tip
- Parchment paper
How to make Rame di Napoli with pistachio
Blend together all the dry ingredients: cocoa, vanillin, sugar, biscuits, cinnamon, cloves and the almonds just toasted in a pan. Pour everything into a large bowl and add the flour.
Add the softened, room-temperature lard, the eggs, the finely chopped candied orange peel or the jam, and the milk little by little.
Work until you obtain a mixture similar to a dense cream—soft but not liquid—and finish by adding the baker’s ammonia or baking powder.
Fill a piping bag with a round tip with the mixture and pipe snails of dough about 1 9/16 inches (approx. 1.6 in) wide.
Bake for about 7 minutes at 180°C (356°F). Do the toothpick test; if done, remove immediately from the oven, take off the baking sheet and let cool. Be careful: since they are small they can dry out very quickly.
Once the dough pieces are ready, prepare the chocolate. If you want to fill the Rame di Napoli with pistachio cream, as I did, or with Nutella, once the rame are cold make a hollow in the center of each—without piercing to the bottom. Pour in a bit of the spread into each hollow and place in the freezer for 20 minutes.
Meanwhile prepare the chocolate: I melt the pistachio chocolate at 37°C (99°F) using my food processor. Alternatively, melt it in a double boiler, taking care that the hot water does not touch the chocolate container. Watch the temperature: do not exceed 37°C (99°F). Keep the heat low, as you would ruin the chocolate and it would set opaquely and unevenly. Ideally you’d temper the chocolate properly, but glazing 40 rame that way would be demanding, so just avoid overheating it.
After the spread has set and the rame are firm, glaze them by dipping the rounded side into the pistachio chocolate, place them on a rack and sprinkle with pistachio crumbs. You’ll see that on the cold rame the coating will set in an instant and they’ll be ready to enjoy!
Storage and tips
Rame di Napoli keep for a few days at room temperature, covered with a tea towel or a sheet of aluminum foil. Unfortunately, as with all pastries, the fresher they are the softer and more delicious they will be.
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