Do you like tarallini, the savory ones? They are tasty, tempting, great with aperitifs, starters, or as a snack in your free time. They pair perfectly with cold cuts, pizza, and even a good glass of beer or wine, depending on your taste. Besides being delicious and crunchy, they are fragrant and aromatic thanks to the fennel seeds that make them even more delightful. We can make them using sourdough starter discard, thus avoiding waste.
- Difficulty: Easy
- Cost: Budget-friendly
- Cooking time: 15 Minutes
- Portions: 30 tarallini
- Cooking methods: Oven
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: All seasons
Ingredients
- 5 oz sourdough starter
- 2 cups Manitoba flour
- 1/2 cup water
- 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1 1/4 tsp fine salt
- 1 tbsp fennel seeds
Preparation
1) Refresh the sourdough starter as you usually do, take the amount you need and let it ferment well covered until it has doubled in size.
2) As soon as the starter has doubled in volume, add all the other ingredients and knead until you obtain a rather firm, uniform dough ball, well blended. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let it rise for two hours, then transfer the dough onto a floured work surface.
3) Divide the dough into pieces of about 1 oz each. Roll each piece into a stick about 8 inches long, then cut it in half and form the tarallini by joining the two ends of each stick. Continue until the dough is used up. Place each tarallino on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and let them rise.
4) When the tarallini have risen, preheat the oven to the highest temperature. Before baking, brush them with a little extra virgin olive oil, then place them on the middle rack and bake for about 15–20 minutes or until they are completely golden. Check doneness by breaking one tarallino in half: it should be fully cooked and crunchy. Remove them immediately and let them cool. The fennel seed tarallini are ready to be enjoyed.
