A little sacrifice and deep-fried carnival delights

The aroma of deep-fried dough is drifting dangerously through my back door. If there was ever an excuse needed to clear my front path of snow, I needed look no further. It’s one of the highlights of my year. In the run up to Lent a few of my neighbours set up a makeshift stall on the street next to the bar. It’s so close to home I can practically hear the oil crackling! Within five minutes I’m standing holding a crumpled paper bag filled with hot fritelle (mini deep-fried sweetened dough balls) in one hand and a glass of the local white wine in the other. The thought of waiting until I get home – less than two minutes walk – is impossible to even contemplate. I’ve never been able to resist a warm doughnut. By the time I’ve finished the wine the paper bag in my hand is looking sad and empty and I’m feeling decidedly guilty, not to mention gluttonous. But then I remind myself… that’s the whole point.

With Ash Wednesday approaching and the Spartan challenge of Lent threatening on the horizon, the race seems to be on in Italy to make the most of the last few days of the Carnival season. From now until next Tuesday bakeries and cake shops across the country will be frying dough by the wheelbarrow-load. That’s because after next Tuesday – known as Shrove Tuesday or Martedi Grasso – if tradition has its way, there won’t be a fried pastry to be found anywhere in the country. So ‘get them while you can’, appears to be the mantra everyone is living by because next week we fast and sacrifice.

For Catholics, Lent was traditionally a time of stringent fasting--one full meal and two light meals a day coupled with an abstinence from meat and meat products. The word carnival derives from the Latin, carne levamen, or ‘to take away meat’. Although the restrictions have since been relaxed as far as Lent is concerned, Carnival remains another in Italy’s calendar of acceptable periods of excess.

Carnival has very ancient origins. Some say it originated in Roman times when Saturnalia, the Saturn festival, and Lupercalia, the feast of the full moon, were celebrated. Today there are all sorts of carnival party. Venice, of course, is the most famed. It was first recorded in 1268. Every year something in the region of one million visitors from across the globe descend on the city to witness the party. I went myself a couple of years back. It’s a great experience for anyone who hasn’t been but you have to be prepared to brave the crowds. I could almost hear the streets groaning under the weight.

Every town has its own take on the carnival. In Viareggio, spectacular floats parade around the city. In Ivrea in Piedmont the whole town comes out to do battle armed with 60 tons of imported oranges. A few kilometres from home, in the small market town of Fiorenzuola, they do the Zobia. It’s hard to explain to anyone not familiar with the custom. It’s everything Venice is not – except, that is, for the shared appetite for deep-fired pastries.

Here in Castello, however, the closest we get to a celebration is the makeshift stall outside the bar. Not that I’m complaining. There’s no queuing, the company’s good and the fritelle and wine are free. What’s not to like?

Carnival pastries

The typical dolci (sweets) of carnival are fried pastries that change name depending on where in the country you happen to live. They’re known locally and in Milan as chiacchiere, or little gossips. In piedmont they are called bugie (or lies), cenci (rags) in Tuscany, sfrappe in the Marche and crostoli or nastri di suore (nun’s ribbons) in other parts of the country. Despite the diversity of nomenclature, and leaving aside a few minor variations in recipe, they all amount to pretty much the same thing. They are pieces of pastry, cut into various shapes and sizes, deep-fried and dusted in sugar. So you have just six days left to get frying - after that, it’s time for a little sacrifice – at least, that is, until the 19^th of March, the feast day of San Giuseppe, patron saint of friers!

Chiacchiere

500g plain flour

50ml olive oil

25ml white wine

4 free-range eggs, gently beaten

3 tablespoons caster sugar

½ teaspoon baking powder

Pinch of salt

Zest of an unwaxed lemon

Oil for frying

Icing sugar for dusting

Sieve the flour and baking powder onto a large work surface.  Make a well in the centre and add the eggs, oil, lemon zest and wine. (I use the local white wine, a dry Ortrugo, which is slightly fizzy and I find works very well. However, it’s also commonplace to use either Marsala or the liqueur Strega.) Using a fork, begin incorporating a little of the flour into the wet ingredients. Bring everything together to the point where you are able to knead the dough with your hands. Knead for a few minutes until you have a smooth ball of dough.  Break off small tennis ball-size pieces of dough and roll to a thickness of 3mm (you can use a pasta machine for this set to its widest setting).  Cut the dough into rectangles with a fluted pastry wheel and make two incisions in the middle of the rectangle.

Fry the dough in hot oil for a minute on each side.  Remove from the pan with a slotted spoon and drain on kitchen paper.  When cool dust with icing sugar.

Pazzo for Panettone!

For one month of the year Italians go crazy [pazzo] for panettone. If anything could be classified as a national festive cake, you need look no further. You know that Christmas is approaching in Italy when supermarkets replace autumnal displays of chestnuts, porcini mushrooms and pumpkins with pyramid-shaped mountains of boxed panettone cakes. Come the 15^th of January, once the dregs have been cleared in the sales, you won’t find a panettone for love or money.

There are many legends which lay claim to the origin of panettone.  One of these dates its origin back to the 15^th Century, when a Milanese nobleman Ughetto degli Atellani, fell in love with the daughter of a poor baker named Antonio.  To win her love, the nobleman disguised himself as a baker and invented this rich bread.  After having tasted the rich bread, the Duke of Milan, Ludovico il Moro Sforza, gave his permission to the marriage and the new cake-like bread gained popularity.  Another, much more simple explanation finds reference to a ‘Pan dei ton’ in the 1300s which translated means ‘luxury bread’ in Milanese dialect.

Today panettone has achieved a national popularity that is largely unparalleled. It’s a subject of considerable debate and speculation. Which brand/ or brands of panettone are you buying this year? Do you opt for an artisan panettone, made by hand, or a mass-produced industrial version made by the likes of Bauli, Motta, Tre Marie or one of the many supermarket-own brands? Do you go for a traditional panettone made with canditi (a mix of orange and lemon peel) or a version from Verona traditionally made without the candied fruit? Alternatively, do you opt for one of the many more recent adaptations made to placate modern tastes such as with chocolate or chocolate drops or chocolate cream or chocolate topping or vanilla cream or almond topping etc., etc., etc!!! You get the idea. The range is staggering and it’s no wonder that you can be left feeling a little bewildered and overwhelmed.

Italians are pragmatic when it comes to panettone. Two factors determine decision-making: cost and quality. The difficulty is that Italians will seldom ever buy just one panettone. It’s custom today to give them as gifts, so it doesn’t come as a surprise when someone arrives at the doorstep holding a boxed panettone in one hand, a bottle of spumante [sparkling wine] in the other. Buying just one panettone doesn’t happen – hence, I guess, the huge supermarket stockpile. Personally, I buy anywhere up to a dozen every year and my thinking goes like this. For gifts, I’ll buy a decent supermarket variety – how decent depends on the recipient. If the postman has delivered a particularly good service over the year, it will reflect in the brand. If the neighbours have been giving me trouble about my dog, it’s a supermarket own brand, I’m afraid. As for the house, there’s no consensus. My wife enjoys nothing better than a non-descript supermarket brand (€2.50), no thrills but excellent for dunking into a café latte in the morning. I like the rustic, traditional artisan version whereas the kids want chocolate. They say there’s no pleasing everybody, but at Christmas you have to try and make an exception.

Recipes

Mini panettone

If you have the time, homemade panettone, in my view, always tastes better. They taste buttery and unctuous and you have the luxury of being able to incorporate the ingredients of your choice. The following recipe is based on the classic Milanese version. I have also included a variation – stuffed mini panettone. I’ve used a mascarpone and candied peel for the filling. You could, however, substitute with chocolate drops, chopped nuts, dried fruits or a combination of any of the above.

Makes: 6

Ingredients for basic panettone

6 mini panettone cases

380g plain flour
1/2 teaspoon of salt
12g fresh yeast
1/2 cup lukewarm milk
2 eggs
2 egg yolks
150g unsalted butter
65g candied peel
80g raisins or sultanas
 
To make the panettone, sift the flour and salt together in a bowl. Make a well in the centre and add the yeast which has been dissolved in the milk and the whole eggs.  Mix enough flour with the milk to make a thick batter and leave to 'sponge' in a warm place for 30 minutes.  Next, add the egg yolks, sugar and softened butter and knead for about 5 minutes until you have a soft, smooth and elastic dough.  Let rise for 1-2 hours until doubled in size.  Finally knock the dough down and gently knead in the sultanas and candied peel.  Divide the dough into 6 pieces and place into individual panettone cases and let rise until doubled in size.  This should take about 1 hour. 

Bake in a preheated oven at 170 C for 20 minutes and then cool on a wire rack.  Decorate with ribbon and serve.

As an alternative, you can fill the panettone with a mascarpone cream.

Ingredients

6 mini panettone (as above)
2 egg yolks
2 tablespoons of sugar
250g mascarpone cheese
50g candied peel

To make the filling, whisk the egg yolks with the sugar until thick and foamy.  Beat in the mascarpone cheese (leave the mascarpone out of the fridge for at least 30 minutes before using) and stir in the candied peel. Cut the tops of the panettone, scoop out a little of the filling and fill with the mascarpone cream. Place the lid back on, decorate and serve.
 

Customised Panettone

If you don’t have the time to make your own panettone, simply buy one at the supermarket and give it a rich makeover. It looks impressive and it tastes even better!

1 panettone (any supermarket variety will do)

2 egg yolks

2 heaped tablespoons caster sugar

250gm mascarpone

300gm chocolate grated

250ml double cream

Icing sugar for dusting

To customise your panettone, gently scoop out the middle of the panettone from the base with a knife. Make sure you leave enough around the edges so that the panettone keeps its shape. Crumble the insides into small pieces and set aside.

Beat the egg yolks with the sugar until you have a thick creamy consistency (about 2-3 minutes with an electric beater).Add the mascarpone (make sure it’s room temperature when you do so) and beat into the egg mixture. At this point, should you wish, add a shot of your favourite tipple. To finish the stuffing, fold in the crumbled panettone. Pack the mixture back into the shell and place on a large serving plate.

Gently heat the cream (making sure it does not boil) and then add grated chocolate. Stir until the chocolate is melted and pour over the panettone. You don’t need to be too precise, allow the sauce to drip decoratively down the sides. Allow to cool and then dust with icing sugar and decorate as you please.