Today is Fat Thursday and I’m here to offer you a Carnival-style recipe! The famous chiacchiere, or frappe, as they are often called in other parts of Italy! These are strictly fried sweets, and far be it from me to say otherwise! Unfortunately for me, the doctor has recently put me on a diet and I have to abstain even on rare occasions like this from indulging! Of course, I had to celebrate somehow, don’t you think? And here is my baked version, much lighter and with very little butter, but equally delicious. Honestly, I remember making them in the past, but I didn’t like them at all, so I skipped suggesting them on the blog! This year, however, I decided to enrich them with flavors from my homeland by adding Bronte pistachio flour and Sicilian almonds to the dough. I must say they were truly a delight. I say ‘were’ because we practically devoured them all! So much for the diet! But who cares, they were light! I’m happy to share this recipe, as I believe I’m not the only one who can’t indulge in frying or doesn’t want to! And it’s certainly a good compromise considering the final result! In fact, I’m not going to claim they are as good as the fried ones, but I assure you their biscuit-like and crunchy texture is not bad at all, unexpectedly exceeding expectations! Then, on my niece’s suggestion, I embellished them with a dark chocolate glaze and more pistachio flour, which will give the palate that extra touch of indulgence that children especially desire! Try it to believe it!

Difficulty: Easy
Cost: Medium
Rest time: 1 Hour
Preparation time: 10 Minutes
Portions: About 35
Cooking methods: Oven
Cuisine: Italian

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups type 1 flour
3/4 cup pistachio flour
1/4 cup almond flour
1/4 cup cane sugar
1 egg
1 egg white
1 1/2 tbsps butter
2 tbsps liqueur Strega (I used Zibibbo)
1 packet vanillin
1 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 pinch salt
as needed powdered sugar
as needed pistachio flour
2 oz dark chocolate

Preparation:

In a large bowl, combine the flours, cane sugar, vanillin, and baking soda (fig. 1).
Make a well and add the egg, egg white, and a pinch of salt (fig. 2).
Then incorporate the soft butter, cut into pieces (fig. 3).
Finally, add the liqueur and mix (fig. 4).
Proceed to knead the dough by hand (fig. 5).
Transfer to a floured surface and knead until you obtain a soft but not sticky dough (fig. 6).
Wrap the dough with plastic wrap and leave it in the fridge for 1 hour. After this time, roll out half of the dough on a floured work surface with the help of a rolling pin (fig. 7).
Proceed to thin the dough with a pasta machine until smooth and stretched. To achieve this result, you will need to insert it several times into the machine and fold it over itself, dusted with flour. Then shape your chiacchiere into rectangles using a fluted pastry wheel (fig. 8).
Make one or two cuts in the center, depending on the size. I made larger ones measuring 4×2 inches with 2 cuts in the center, and some measuring 4×1 inches with one cut (fig. 9).
As you make them, place them on a baking sheet covered with parchment paper (fig. 10).
Bake in a preheated oven at 356°F for about 10 minutes, until the chiacchiere are lightly golden! Remove from the oven and let cool on a rack (fig. 11).
You can enjoy them, once cooled, simply with a dusting of powdered sugar.
And maybe some extra pistachio flour on the surface.
They are ready to be enjoyed just like that!
If you want to make them even more indulgent, melt the chocolate in a double boiler and garnish to your liking, adding more pistachio flour on top.
Allow the chocolate glaze to dry completely before storing them in a box or airtight container. I recommend at least 2 hours. And voilà… your baked pistachio and chocolate chiacchiere are ready to be enjoyed!
Bon Appétit from FeFè’s kitchen!