Bloody Chocolate and Fritters for Carnival
In Naples during Carnival you can’t miss fritters and bloody chocolate, typical Neapolitan Carnival sweets, along with migliaccio.
Today I present you a Double Recipe, in one single article (the recipe for fritters+the recipe for bloody chocolate: all the secrets to prepare perfect Neapolitan Carnival fritters that melt in your mouth (crisp, puffy, light and not oily) and the recipe for homemade Neapolitan bloody chocolate (without pig blood), of course).
Additionally, I’ll explain how to make delicious flower fritters to fill with jam and/or Nutella and/or bloody chocolate and/or honey and/or custard (white or chocolate).
If you’re looking for more Carnival recipes (sweet or savory), click on my Special: “Must-Have Carnival Recipes“.
Valentine’s Day is approaching, take a look at my: “Valentine’s Day Special“
You might also be interested in:
- Difficulty: Medium
- Cost: Cheap
- Rest time: 1 Hour
- Preparation time: 50 Minutes
- Cooking methods: Frying
- Cuisine: Italian Regional
- Region: Campania
- Seasonality: Carnival
Ingredients for Carnival FRITTERS
- 4 cups All-purpose flour (sifted (I used Caputo pastry flour))
- 2 Eggs (whole)
- 2 tablespoons Sugar
- 3 tablespoons Butter (softened)
- 4 tablespoons Cognac (or other liquor (grappa, vodka, etc.))
- 4 tablespoons White wine
- to taste Salt
- to taste Orange or lemon zest (grated)
- to taste Vanillin
- to taste Cinnamon (optional)
- 1 quart Vegetable oil (for frying the fritters)
- to taste Powdered sugar (or granulated, for garnishing)
- to taste Custard or jam (for the flower fritters, optional)
- to taste Cherries (for garnishing flower fritters, optional)
- 1 quart Whole milk
- 3/4 cup Cornstarch
- 2 1/2 cups Sugar
- 1 2/3 cups Unsweetened cocoa powder (quality)
- 7 oz 70% dark chocolate
- 7 oz Butter
- 1 packet Cinnamon powder
- to taste Vanillin
- to taste Candied citron (finely chopped, optional)
- to taste Chocolate chips (optional)
Tools for Bloody Chocolate and Carnival Fritters
- Pasta Maker electric, Marcato
- Thermometer for food, with probe and timer
- Deep Fryer electric with timer and basket
Preparation
Mix in a mixer with a paddle attachment (but the dough can also be worked by hand) eggs, sugar, salt, wine, liquor, and flavors, butter, and finally, the flour.
The dough should be soft and not sticky.
Let the dough rest for at least an hour, preferably two or three hours (the longer it rests, the better, 1st secret).
Once the resting time is over, the dough must be rolled out very thinly (the thinner it is, the crisper and puffier it will be, 2nd secret).
The dough should NOT rest at very low temperatures, if it’s cold, cover the dough well, the ideal resting temperature is about 75-77°F (3rd secret).
The dough can also be rolled out thinly by hand, BUT if you have a pasta machine for fresh pasta, it’s ideal.
Start rolling the fritter dough in the pasta machine from notch 0, following through all notches, until reaching the penultimate (should correspond to the eighth notch) to reduce thickness.
Arrange the fritters on a floured tray.
Fritters can be in various shapes: Diamonds (see photo above); Knots (cut into strips about 6 inches and tie like a ribbon); Roses (see photo below); Nests (cut the dough into tagliolini and roll with a fork like a nest and then fry).
These are flower fritters, using two flower-shaped cutters of different sizes, cut two little flowers and overlap them with alternating petals.
Fry the fritters in a pot with high sides, in plenty of vegetable oil at around 340°F, a few at a time (otherwise the temperature drops too much), remove them as soon as they turn golden and drain on paper towels (4th secret).
The flower fritters are placed on a stick (the handle of a wooden spoon works) and the stick is held at the center even during frying, until they take the flower shape, puffing up (you can find many tutorial videos online to understand the frying method of these flower fritters, it’s easier than it seems).
Flower fritters are filled with jam, bloody chocolate or with custard, this cream works great (both white and chocolate) because it’s nice and thick.
You can garnish the flower fritters with cherries or berries
Mix in a saucepan cocoa, sugar, cornstarch, vanilla, and gradually add milk without forming lumps.
Place the saucepan over medium heat, add the butter in pieces and the dark chocolate, and bring everything to a boil.
Remove the bloody chocolate from the heat and let it cool.
Add ground cinnamon and citron and/or chocolate chips (both optional).Serve the fritters with the bloody chocolate.
Notes and Tips
Thanks to CucinAmica for the fritters recipe (the photos of the fritters and flower fritters were all taken by me during the cooking course).
Shopping Tips!!!
I made these fritters perfectly and in no time, thanks to my Marcato Electric Pasta Machine (compatible with 12 extra formats).
For a perfect, evenly cooked fry, I bought the Cecotec fryer with timer and lid with glass to prevent splashes, smoke, and bad smells with an external removable container, making cleaning easy.
Otherwise, for a great fry this frying pan with basket is also very practical.
You can purchase all the items I recommend above, on Amazon, at a great price, just click directly on the respective links.
What are Carnival Fritters?
Fritters (or sprelle, crostoli, frappe, bugie, or cenci, names used depending on different Italian regions) are a traditional sweet, crispy dough based on a twisted ribbon-like dough, fried and sprinkled with powdered sugar, traditionally consumed in the period just before Lent, generally during Carnival.
