“Who comes to Lucca and doesn’t eat the buccellato, it’s as if they’ve never been to Lucca”
The Gluten-Free Buccellato of Lucca is the gluten-free version of the sweet bread, enriched with anise and raisins typical of the city of Lucca.
The Latin term “buccellatum“, in Roman times, referred to a ring-shaped bread made up of many small loaves placed side by side (the buccellae, or “bites”) that created a crown.
Even the modern Buccellato of Lucca, originally, was ring-shaped and brought by the people of Lucca to the tables as a Sunday dessert, carried on the forearm after Mass.
Today, it is also available in a straight form, more convenient to be transported inside a bag.
An exterior with a dark brown and shiny color, due to the brushing with a layer of sugar and egg and a light cut that facilitates leavening.
It can be eaten in slices sipping a glass of wine, preferably fortified or with fresh cream and strawberries, cream and coffee, or ricotta and rum.
There is also a Sicilian buccellato: shortcrust pastry, filled with dried figs, raisins, almonds, orange peels, or other ingredients that vary depending on the region where it is prepared, ring-shaped, typical Christmas dessert.
- Difficulty: Easy
- Cost: Cheap
- Rest time: 2 Hours
- Preparation time: 10 Minutes
- Portions: 4 People
- Cooking methods: Oven
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: All seasons
Ingredients
- 2 cups rice flour
- 50 ml gluten-free sourdough starter (or 5g of dry yeast)
- 2 oz sugar (+ 1 tablespoon)
- 2 tbsp butter
- 1/2 tsp anise seeds
- 1 oz raisins
- 3/4 tsp salt
- 1 egg
Steps
Dissolve the sourdough starter in 1/2 cup of water (or milk), add the rice flour, sugar, butter, and salt. Knead.
Add the anise seeds and the raisins.
Let it rise, covered, for 1 hour.
Form a ring or a loaf.
Let it rise for another hour, covered.
Make a cut on the surface and brush with beaten egg mixed with a tablespoon of sugar.
Bake in a static oven at 350°F for 40-45 minutes.
In Lucca, it is traditional to eat Buccellato from Taddeucci, which has been producing the best Buccellato in the area since 1881.
In Lucca, it is traditional to eat Buccellato from Taddeucci, which has been producing the best Buccellato in the area since 1881.
