Tigelle with a tigella maker or crescentine, grandma’s recipe for the famous Modenese focaccine. The original Modenese tigelle recipe is a sort of soft rolls cooked in a pan made with a dough of flour, lard, yeast and water, which reminds me a lot of our Sicilian rosticceria. Once upon a time grandma’s tigelle or crescentine were cooked in characteristic terracotta discs called “tigelle”, hence the current name for this typical Emilian bread. These small rolls are soft and tasty with a characteristic flattened shape; they are typical of the Modenese Apennines, where they were enjoyed with the typical “cunza”, a chopped mix of lard, rosemary and garlic, or with cold cuts, salami, vegetables or cheeses. The original tigelle recipe, born as a “poor” dish of the mountain populations, today has become a cult in restaurants and trattorie — and imagine: even in Catania, almost at the opposite end of the peninsula, several “tigellerie” have opened offering soft tigelle and appetizer boards as main dishes. But back to tradition: the ingredients for the original popular tigelle are: flour, water, salt, brewer’s yeast or baking soda. Today there are less rustic variants — soft tigelle recipes that add extra virgin olive oil, lard or butter, milk and sugar — and we will prepare one of these. Of course, as with all traditional recipes it’s natural that every home and family has its unique and inimitable version, and each family prefers its own. I suggest the one from Maria S., a reader from Modena who not only gave me the tigella maker you’ll see in the photos but also her family recipe. Ready to discover grandma’s crescentine from Modena or tigelle? Let’s go, but before you start kneading I remind you that if you want to stay updated on all my recipes you can follow my Facebook page (here) and my Instagram profile (here).
Take a look:
- Difficulty: Very easy
- Cost: Very inexpensive
- Rest time: 3 Hours
- Preparation time: 15 Minutes
- Portions: 40 pieces
- Cooking methods: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: All seasons
Ingredients to make tigelle
- 8 cups Type 0 flour
- 7 tbsp lard (or 5 tbsp olive oil)
- 2 1/4 tsp active dry yeast (or 0.7 oz (20 g) fresh yeast)
- 2 1/2 tbsp sugar
- 3/4 cup water ((about 7 fl oz) warm)
- 3/4 cup milk ((about 7 fl oz) warm)
- 2 1/4 tsp salt
Tools
- Stand mixers
- Tigella maker
- Bench scraper
Preparation
You can knead the tigelle by hand — in that case add the lard last, only after the dough has absorbed all the water and the other ingredients — then resume kneading. I preferred to use a stand mixer, but you can also use a Thermomix or similar food processors. Many people prefer to roll out the dough and cut discs with a round cutter. Maria, however, suggested forming balls and flattening them just before cooking: this way you’ll obtain soft tigelle and the dough won’t tend to shrink as you form the discs.
Put the flour in the mixer bowl, pour in the milk and water, add the sugar and lard, then start the machine. As soon as the liquids are absorbed, add
the salt. Let the machine work at medium speed until you obtain a smooth, elastic and homogeneous dough.
Turn it out onto the work surface and form a ball. Place it in a warm spot to rise until doubled in size — this may take about 2 hours or more.
Turn the risen dough onto the work surface and, using a bench scraper, divide it into pieces of about 1.4 oz (40 g).
Form balls and let them rest in a warm place (covered with plastic wrap) for 20 minutes, then flatten them slightly and let rest another 10 minutes.
Heat the tigella maker over medium heat for 5 minutes on both sides and, once hot, place the prepared tigelle in the cavities. Close the lid and cook over the lowest heat for 3-4 minutes per side. Cooking must be slow and gentle to avoid browning the outside while leaving the center raw. When the crescentine are well browned on both sides, remove them from the tigella maker and keep them warm until you’ve finished cooking them all. When finished, enjoy them as you prefer.
Storage and tips
The secret to soft tigelle lies not so much in the ingredients as in the handling. A dough with a well-developed gluten network that is smooth and homogeneous is a good starting point, but only a perfect proof will complete our work, so always wait until the dough has doubled.
Tigelle are excellent hot or warm, but are also good at room temperature and keep for 24 hours if stored in a food-grade plastic bag; they should be reheated before serving.
I prefer to freeze them: just let them sit 20 minutes at room temperature and then reheat and they’ll be ready.
How to cook tigelle in a pan: if you don’t have a tigella maker, cook them in a heavy-bottomed pan or a preheated cast-iron griddle over the lowest heat, turning several times over 4-5 minutes.
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