Have you ever tasted the typical Neapolitan freselle? Freselle are made with bread dough, and once baked, the loaves are cut in two, put back in the oven, and baked again to become crisp. This way, they will keep for a long time and, to enjoy them, it will be enough to wet them with water or sauces to make them soft again. They are also very good eaten plain, crunchy. They are great for lunch, dinner, or a quick snack. Today we talk about freselle made with whole wheat flour and re-milled durum wheat semolina. They can have different shapes and sizes: round like donuts, square or long like lozenges. It is a fat-free food, so it is suitable for everyone. Freselle are generally enjoyed soaked with octopus broth or mussels and clams, legumes, but the dish to which the fresella is indissolubly linked is the Neapolitan “caponata.” Caponata is a unique dish based on tomatoes, oil, salt, and a few anchovies, which should be served exclusively on freselle. The recipe I am talking about today is my mother-in-law’s. An ancient, very simple recipe made with sourdough.
- Difficulty: Easy
- Cost: Cheap
- Preparation time: 20 Minutes
- Portions: 20
- Cooking methods: Oven
- Cuisine: Italian
Ingredients
- 10.5 oz whole wheat flour
- 7 oz re-milled durum wheat semolina
- 5.3 oz sourdough
- 1 1/8 cups water
- 0.35 oz fine salt
Preparation
After refreshing the sourdough, as you are already used to doing, let it rise until doubled in size.
When the sourdough has doubled, transfer it to a large bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer and pour over half of the flour and half of the water provided. Start kneading to dissolve the sourdough and mix the ingredients.
Then add the rest of the flour, the remaining water (a little at a time because you may need a little less or a little more than the amount I indicated), and the salt.
Knead until all the ingredients are perfectly mixed, and the dough is well kneaded (that is, it will be completely attached to the hook, leaving the sides of the bowl clean) and smooth.
Let the dough rise well covered, at room temperature, until doubled in size. When it is well risen, transfer the dough to the worktable, floured with a little re-milled durum wheat semolina. Weigh it and cut it into pieces of the desired size and weight.
To form the donut-shaped freselle: stretch each piece with your palms, form a snake about 8 inches long and as thick as two fingers, and join the ends. Place the donuts on a baking sheet with parchment paper
For rectangular freselle: roll each piece first towards us, then place the loaf obtained vertically and roll again. Slightly flatten the shape obtained, stretch it a little with your hands, and place it on the baking tray with parchment paper.
Let the freselle rise again and then bake them.
Cook in a preheated oven at 392°F for about 25 minutes. Remove the very soft loaves, let them cool for 5 minutes, cut them in two, let the steam out, and put them back in the oven, at the lowest part, with the crumb side facing up, at 356°F for about 20 minutes, keeping the oven door slightly open to let excess moisture out until the freselle are perfectly crisp.
After the time has passed, turn them upside down (i.e., with the crumb down) and let them bake for another 25/30 minutes (it will take a little more time because the crumb must dry very well). Cooking times refer to my gas oven. Always check your oven. Occasionally rotate the tray to ensure they dry evenly. Enjoy them hot or cold, stuffed as you like, with legumes, in soups. They keep for a very long time in plastic food bags.
