This year, for the first time, we didn’t hang the stockings for Befana, and Befana didn’t visit our house. 😅 Both my children returned to their commitments before the end of this Christmas holiday, Flavia in Germany and Fabrizio in Bologna, so yesterday, a day early, I replaced the real stockings with some stocking-shaped tartlets for Befana, which we enjoyed at breakfast just before their departure.

I hadn’t planned to write the recipe, didn’t have the time (nor the strength, as I’m still battling the seasonal flu) to write it yesterday at the last minute, and didn’t have a way to remake the tartlets to re-photograph them, to eliminate the little flaw I hadn’t foreseen: the silver sugar decorations melt during baking! 😅 Perhaps I should have known that sugar decorations melt! But I didn’t know! 😁

Luckily, I baked them in the small oven, two at a time given their size, so at least, for the two tartlets of the second batch, I could make them without sugar decorations!, replacing them with a quick water icing just before serving them. 😊

They look very homemade but are delicious! And they made a nice impression on the breakfast table, especially since they were a pleasant surprise as I made them secretly and baked them while everyone was sleeping – as a proper Befana should do 😄 – and no one expected them.

Writing the recipe now… a bit too late to fill the stocking… but why not do it? I don’t want to wait a whole year for Befana to return! 😃 These stocking-shaped tartlets for Befana, or in any shape you want, are so good you must try them!

〰〰〰

For more tartlet ideas, check out these recipes: 👇

Difficulty: Easy
Cost: Cheap
Rest time: 10 Minutes
Portions: 4
Cooking methods: Oven
Cuisine: Italian
Seasonality: Epiphany, All Seasons

Ingredients

1 block oil-based shortcrust pastry
light jam (I used peach)
dark jam (I used cherry)
colored sprinkles
4 teaspoons water icing

Tools

Rolling Pin
Baking Tray
Parchment Paper

Steps

Prepare the oil-based shortcrust pastry following the recipe.
👉 You can let the dough rest in a cool place for 10-15 minutes, but it’s not essential as it’s a dough that works well if it’s not too cold.
Divide the dough into 4 equal parts to make 4 stocking-shaped tartlets for Befana.
Roll out each portion of dough with the rolling pin.
Cut out a stocking shape from each rolled piece of dough using the tip of a knife.
👉 To make them all the same size, you can draw a template on a piece of paper. I cut them by eye, so they turned out slightly different from each other.
With the leftover dough, make a rope to use for the border and the 2 pieces needed to draw the heel and toe.
Also, remember to keep a small rectangle of dough to make the stocking cuff.
Place the rope on the edge of the stocking, previously moistened with a thin layer of jam (useful for better adhesion), leaving only the final part of the stocking free where the cuff will be placed.
Spread the jam.
👉 Jams of two different colors make the color contrast between the sock and toe/heel more visible. I had peach jam and very little cherry jam at home, and I also used some quince and lemon jam. Of course, you can use whatever jams you prefer.
Complete the stocking by adding the dough rectangle for the cuff.
☝ I repeat the clarification already mentioned in the introduction: don’t do as I did 😃 don’t decorate the stocking with sprinkles or silver sugar decorations before baking, because they will melt. Of the 4 tartlets I prepared, I have only one pre-baking photo to show you, the following one, I didn’t think I’d write the recipe, so there were just four photos taken for personal use. And guess what, I chose to immortalize this one because it was the prettiest, unaware of how the sugar decorations would become after baking (yes, I covered them from your view with writings! 😂)
Place the 4 stocking-shaped tartlets on a baking tray lined with parchment paper and bake at 356°F for about 15 minutes.
Prepare a little water icing, just a tablespoon of powdered sugar is enough.
After removing the tartlets from the oven, decorate the cuff (and also the border if you like) with a layer of icing.
Finally, sprinkle the tartlet with colored sprinkles or decorate the heel and toe as desired.
They are delicious. Oh right, I already told you! 😄
Happy Befana!