The recipe for sweet Carnival nachos is a fun and colorful variant of the salty and crunchy chips from Mexican cuisine.
Made with shortcrust pastry to which we add colorful sugar sprinkles known as ‘mompariglia’ before rolling out the dough, sweet Carnival nachos become even more delicious if served with spread or jams.
A nice and fun recipe to make even with children, perhaps when adding the mompariglia, these sweet nachos were really enjoyed by us because we “dipped” them in my 5′ chocolate sauce and the two of us polished off almost half the tray on a lazy Sunday afternoon!
The shortcrust pastry recipe is the well-tested one that you can find here, but this time I kneaded by hand, so I can show you how to get excellent shortcrust pastry if you don’t have a stand mixer or love to knead by hand. I usually mix in a large bowl following the order of the ingredients and then move to the worktop; this way I avoid the famous “crater” that often results in the escape of eggs and other liquids.
So if during Carnival or for a children’s party you are looking for quick little treats that don’t require leavening, make the sweet Carnival nachos, I’m sure you will love them too!
READ THE FAQ AND ADVICE AT THE END OF THE RECIPE
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- Difficulty: Easy
- Cost: Medium
- Rest time: 2 Hours
- Preparation time: 10 Minutes
- Portions: about 35 pieces
- Cooking methods: Oven, Stovetop
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: Carnival
- Energy 208.50 (Kcal)
- Carbohydrates 26.33 (g) of which sugars 10.58 (g)
- Proteins 3.78 (g)
- Fat 10.21 (g) of which saturated 6.32 (g)of which unsaturated 3.55 (g)
- Fibers 1.37 (g)
- Sodium 8.73 (mg)
Indicative values for a portion of 20 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
I made the full dose of shortcrust pastry, but then I froze half.
- 4 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- 7 oz butter
- 4 eggs (equivalent to 2 medium)
- vanilla
- mandarin peel (grated)
- glitter sugars (Mompariglia)
- 5 oz dark chocolate
- 2/3 cup semi-skimmed milk (or whole or plant-based)
- Half teaspoon cornstarch
- water (a drop to dilute the cornstarch)
Tools:
To roll out the shortcrust pastry, I use sticks that have different thicknesses; they are made of natural wood and really handy.
- 1 Worktop
- 1 Cutter
- Sticks
Steps
For all the information or if you want to knead with the stand mixer, check out the shortcrust pastry recipe – basic recipe (with video)
– In a bowl, place the cold but workable butter in small pieces, the powdered sugar, and mix the two ingredients together; then add the eggs previously mixed briefly (so they blend more quickly into the dough).
– Blend the ingredients, then add mandarin zest and vanilla, and finally the sifted flour.
– Knead everything first in the bowl and then finish the shortcrust pastry on the worktop which will be ready in a few minutes. Wrap the shortcrust pastry in plastic wrap and put it in the fridge for at least 2 hours.
– Sprinkle the worktop with a little flour, take the shortcrust pastry and sprinkle the colorful sprinkles on top. Fold the dough over itself to blend the sugars well.
– At this point, roll out the shortcrust pastry to a thickness of about 1/8 inch (3 mm) and create diamonds with a pastry wheel or a knife (make diagonal cuts first from one side, then from the other, and finally in the center of the diamonds to get small triangles)
– Wrap aluminum foil around the rolling pin to create supports on which to place the triangles, slide the rolling pin out, and place these supports on the oven tray; then place the triangles on top, slightly spaced apart. Bake in a preheated oven at 350°F (180°C) for 10-12′ (they should lightly brown)
– To make the 5′ chocolate sauce, read here, in this version I used only one type of chocolate instead of 2
– Arrange the sweet Carnival nachos on a tray and serve the 5′ chocolate sauce in a small bowl.
Storage:
– The sweet Carnival nachos can be stored in a cookie tin; the chocolate sauce can be refrigerated covered with cling film in contact or closed in a container.
FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions)
– Can granulated sugar be used instead of powdered sugar?
– Sure, same dose.
– How else can you flavor shortcrust pastry?
– with lemon or orange zest .. lime .. or cinnamon or just with vanilla .. or mixing citrus zest.
