Grandma Rosa’s fritters are absolutely the best; crumbly, light, and packed with powdered sugar, they’re my favorite sweet of Carnival.
Carnival fritters are simple sweets made throughout Italy, with each family having its own recipe and each region its own name. In Bologna, they are called sfrappole. The history of this sweet is very ancient, and the ingredients were completely different and have changed significantly over time. Today, frappe are made with simple ingredients that we all have in our pantry: flour, sugar, butter, eggs, liquor or wine, and flavorings to taste.
As a child, I couldn’t wait for my mom to make them, and when she took out the lard from the fridge, it was a joy for me. Back then, they were fried in pork fat, and I assure you they were spectacular, very light, and very dry.
I later understood, attending Luca Montersino’s courses, that lard is the best fat for preparing fried foods. Only 1% of it gets absorbed. For convenience, I always use peanut oil because it has a neutral taste and a very high smoke point, but in our region, lard is used both in doughs (flatbreads, mountain crescentine, fried crescentine) and for frying.
Before moving on to the procedure, here are some ideas for Carnival:
- Difficulty: Easy
- Cost: Economical
- Rest time: 1 Hour
- Preparation time: 15 Minutes
- Portions: 4People
- Cooking methods: Frying
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: Carnival
- Energy 340.51 (Kcal)
- Carbohydrates 49.87 (g) of which sugars 20.31 (g)
- Proteins 6.68 (g)
- Fat 12.86 (g) of which saturated 3.88 (g)of which unsaturated 8.30 (g)
- Fibers 0.93 (g)
- Sodium 89.35 (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
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 eggs (medium)
- 1.5 tbsp butter (soft)
- 3 tbsp powdered sugar
- 0.7 oz rum (or other liquor to taste)
- 1 pinch salt
- 1 tsp orange zest (grated or other aroma to taste)
- 17.6 oz peanut oil (or lard)
- as needed vanilla powdered sugar
Tools
- 1 Work surface
- 1 Pasta machine
- 1 Fluted cutter
- 1 Pan large
- 1 Tongs
- 1 Bowl
Procedure
In a bowl (or on the work surface), mix the flour with the powdered sugar, add the eggs slightly beaten with a fork, then add the salt and rum.
Knead for a couple of minutes, then add the soft butter and lemon zest, working it all for a few minutes to obtain a smooth and homogeneous dough. The amount of flour is indicative; each flour has a different absorption power (the dough you obtain should be firm, similar to the dough for egg pasta used to make tagliatelle).
Cover with cling film and let it rest for 1 hour at room temperature.
After resting, divide the dough in half and roll it out with a pasta machine. Start from the first notch and go to the last one (no.6), it should be paper-thin, less than 1 mm.
Use the fluted cutter to cut out rectangles and make a small incision in the center.Pour plenty of oil into a large pan and heat it to 338°F. Fry 2 or 3 fritters at a time, cooking them a few seconds on each side.
Drain them well and place them on a tray with paper towels so they lose excess oil.
Let them cool completely and dust them with powdered sugar.
Grandma’s fritters are ready!
Advice
Storage
The grandma’s fritters remain crisp and light for 5 days in a cool, dry place.
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