Catanese rice zeppole or Catanese Saint Joseph’s zeppole, the famous rice fritters with honey made on March 19th, the day of the father’s celebration and Saint Joseph. Also known as Crispelle di riso con miele, together with macco di San Giuseppe or broad-bean macco, they are a traditional dish every Catanese family prepares on the feast day. There are several recipes for making Catanese rice crispelle; on the blog I already have a rustic, yeast-free version, which is my great-grandmother’s, but today I want to tell you how to make the fried Saint Joseph’s zeppole with yeast, soft inside and crunchy outside. A recipe that, together with Palermitan sfince fried with ricotta, you absolutely must try! Let’s go to the kitchen — I’ll tell you the recipe, but before we start cooking, remember that if you want to stay updated on all my recipes you can follow my Facebook page and my Instagram profile.
Also look at:
- Difficulty: Very easy
- Cost: Low cost
- Rest time: 1 Hour 30 Minutes
- Preparation time: 1 Hour
- Portions: 8
- Cooking methods: Frying
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: Father's Day, Spring
Ingredients to make Catanese rice zeppole
- 1 1/2 cups Roma rice (risotto rice) (for risottos)
- 6 1/4 cups water (or milk)
- to taste salt
- 2 1/3 cups all-purpose flour (or finely milled semolina for a more rustic flavor and extra crunch)
- 1/3 cup milk
- 1/2 cup sugar
- to taste orange zest
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon active dry yeast (about 3.5 g (or 12 g fresh))
- 5.3 oz orange blossom honey (or wildflower honey)
- 6 tbsp sugar (plus 1 tsp (approx. 80 g) — for the honey syrup)
- 1/3 cup water
Tools
- Pot
- Bowl
- Cutting board
Steps to make Catanese rice zeppole
To make rice zeppole with honey use a risotto rice. For more rustic, crunchier rice crispelle do not use yeast.
Cook the rice for about 10–15 minutes in lightly salted water and turn off the heat a few minutes before it’s fully cooked; many prefer to use milk instead of water — it’s a more modern, pastry-style variation and works well. Do not drain it; let it rest for 5 minutes so it absorbs the remaining liquid, then transfer it to a large baking dish to cool slightly. When the rice is warm and dry, gather it into a bowl and add:
the all-purpose flour or semolina for a more rustic flavor and extra crunch, the sugar, the cinnamon,
the organic orange zest, the dry or fresh yeast, and the milk to dissolve the yeast and adjust the mixture
Mix everything in bowls, add the vanilla extract or vanillin, blend together and let rest in the oven with the light on for 45–60 minutes.
After resting, get a long, narrow cutting board and spread the rice evenly over it in a layer about 3/4 inch thick.
Heat the oil (to check the temperature, do a wooden skewer test: if you dip it in the hot oil and many bubbles form, the oil is ready for frying). Cut slices of the mixture about 3/4 inch thick and, gently using a knife, let them slide into the hot oil.
Fry the fritters for about 8 minutes, or until they are golden and crunchy to the right degree.
While the rice zeppole are cooking, prepare a syrup of honey, water and sugar by dissolving these three ingredients over very low heat, stirring frequently and bringing just to a simmer.
When all the crispelle are ready, drizzle them with the syrup and serve hot or warm.
For the best taste, rice crispelle should be eaten hot or warm. You can eat them cold, but they will be less good. They can be reheated, but they will never be as good as freshly made; I recommend consuming them at most within the same day.
If you want to stay updated on my recipes, follow me also on:
Pinterest; Twitter; YouTube; TikTok.
From here you can return to the HOME and discover new recipes!
