Cartellate the Apulian Christmas dessert. It’s not Christmas in my home without the aroma and taste of the typical Apulian Cartellate. A dessert with few ingredients, strictly fried and simply seasoned with vincotto or honey. Vincotto is a sweet condiment obtained from cooking the must of Apulian grapes, and there is also a version made from cooking figs. Then there are those who prefer to season them simply with honey and colorful sprinkles. The preparation of Cartellate is a tradition in our country passed down from mother to daughter, bringing together various generations of the family around a table, a few days before Christmas, to patiently prepare these desserts that will enrich our festive table. A moment of joy and serenity to spend together, to savor the taste of ancient traditions, which we are slowly losing. Let’s go then to read my family’s recipe, which I have slightly modified, to prepare delicious Puglian Cartellate
“According to Christian tradition, they are said to represent the halo or the bands that wrapped the Baby Jesus just born”
AND DON’T MISS THESE RECIPES TOO:
- Difficulty: Medium
- Cost: Economical
- Rest time: 2 Hours
- Preparation time: 1 Hour
- Portions: 36 Pieces
- Cooking methods: Stovetop, Frying
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: Christmas
- Energy 149.52 (Kcal)
- Carbohydrates 18.12 (g) of which sugars 2.48 (g)
- Proteins 2.62 (g)
- Fat 7.10 (g) of which saturated 0.99 (g)of which unsaturated 4.31 (g)
- Fibers 0.67 (g)
- Sodium 0.82 (mg)
Indicative values for a portion of 50 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 for Cartellate
- 7 oz all-purpose flour
- 1.4 oz re-milled durum wheat semolina
- 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1/2 cup white wine
- 2 tbsp sugar
- 1/2 orange zest (untreated)
- 1.5 cups vegetable oil (for frying)
What you need to prepare Cartellate
- Serrated Wheel
- Pasta Machine
How to prepare Cartellate perfect recipe
Heat the white wine in a saucepan with the orange zest, only the orange part. Pour the flour and re-milled semolina on the work surface. Make a well in the center and pour in the sugar and olive oil. Simply mix with a fork.
Add the white wine little by little and knead well. You need to obtain a soft and elastic dough but not sticky. Form a dough ball, wrap it in plastic wrap, and let it rest for 30 minutes.
Take the dough and form the Cartellate. You need a pasta machine to obtain very thin sheets. To prevent the dough from drying out, I proceed by taking only a small portion and keeping the rest of the dough wrapped in plastic wrap or a food bag.
From the dough, roll out a very thin sheet, proceeding from the widest setting on the pasta machine to the last notch for a very thin sheet. With a serrated wheel, cut long strips about 2-2.5 cm (3/4 – 1 inch) wide. The strips should be pinched at regular intervals and then twisted and pinched together at some points to form a rose of dough.
Proceed in the same way until the dough is finished. Arrange the Cartellate as you prepare them, side by side, on a wooden board or a tray. I prefer, after finishing the preparation, to let them rest for 2-3 hours. This way they dry a bit and absorb less oil during frying, remaining dry.
Heat plenty of vegetable oil in a small, deep pan. Fry the Cartellate a few at a time in the hot oil. Let them dry upside down on paper towels.
Then season them with warmed vincotto, honey, melted chocolate, and colorful sprinkles
See you tomorrow with a new recipe, a hug, Loredana
Loredana’s Tips
You can prepare the cartellate in advance without seasoning them and store them in a container for a few days. They will remain crispy and perfect
Don’t miss the recipe of the Christmas Roll, the perfect dessert for the holidays
