Chiacchiere
Chiacchiere are crispy pastries typical of the Carnival period and are called by different names according to the regions of origin: chiacchiere in Lombardy, cenci in Tuscany, frappe nel Lazio, cròstoli in Trentino, bugie in Piedmont…
Ingredients
- Flour 00 4.3 cups (500 g)
- Sugar 0.3 cup (70 g)
- Butter 3 ½ tbsp (50 g) - at room temperature
- Grappa 2 tbsp (30 g)
- Eggs 3 - medium
- Baking powder 1 ½ tsp (6 g)
- Vanilla bean 1
- Egg yolks 1
- Fine salt 1 pinch
- Peanut seed oil to taste
- Powdered sugar to taste
How to make
To prepare chiacchiere, sift the flour together with the yeast and pour it into a stand mixer fitted with a spatula attachment. Add sugar, salt, previously beaten eggs and grappa. Mix all the ingredients well.
Replace the spatula with the hook attachment, add the vanilla bean seeds and butter, then continue kneading for 15 minutes until a homogeneous mixture is obtained which should be firm, but fairly soft to the touch. If necessary, you can add 1-2 teaspoons of water. Transfer the dough onto a work surface, and quickly shape it into a ball.
Wrap the dough with plastic wrap and let it rest at room temperature for at least 30 minutes. Next, divide the dough into portions of about 5 oz (150 g) each and start kneading each individually. Flatten a first portion slightly with the palm of your hand, sprinkle it with flour and roll it out with a pasta machine set to the widest thickness.
Fold the short sides of the strip of dough towards the center, then continue to roll it out using an increasingly thinner setting on the pasta machine each time, until it reaches a thickness of 0.88" (2 mm). Do the same with the remaining portions of dough. Let the rolled dough rest for a few minutes and in the meantime bring the oil to a temperature of 300° F (150-160° C). Using a pastry wheel, cut the dough into 2-inch x 4-inch (5 x 10 cm) rectangles and make two central cuts on each shape, parallel to the long side on each one.
As soon as the oil has reached the right temperature, dip 2-3 rectangles of dough with the help of a skimmer and cook them turning them on both sides until they are golden brown. Drain the fritters on a paper towel. Once they are cold, place them on a plate and sprinkle them with plenty of sifted powdered sugar.
