Castagnole with ricotta that I prepared today is a variant with ricotta, made by the pastry chef Leonardo Di Carlo. Castagnole are a typical Carnival dessert, widespread in Lazio, Umbria, Liguria, Marche, Veneto and Abruzzo. Eggs, sugar, flour and butter are the main ingredients of these small sweets, a very ancient recipe, and an eighteenth-century manuscript was found in the state archive of Viterbo in which four damselfish recipes are described, one of which includes baking.

DifficultyVery easy
CostVery cheap
Preparation time1 Hour
Rest time1 Hour
Cooking time5 Minutes
Cooking methodFrying
CuisineItalian

Ingredients

For castagnole with ricotta

14 ounces flour (400 g)

3.5 ounces potato starch (100 g)

2 teaspoons baking powder (10 g)

5.30 ounces sugar (150 g)

1 pinch salt

1.7 ounces unsalted butter (50 g)

3.17 ounces yolks (90 g)

5.30 ounces milk (150 g)

10.60 ounces ricotta cheese (300 g)

¹/₂ lemon (zest)

For frying

35 ounces peanut oil

For finishing

sugar

Tools

1 Bowl

1 Whip

1 Pan

castagnole with ricotta

Steps

In a bowl, add the ricotta with the sugar and grated lemon zest. Beat with a whisk until the mixture is smooth and velvety. Add the egg yolks and then the milk. Mix well and add the melted butter. Finally add the flour and knead. The dough will be soft and a little sticky. Let it rest for 1 hour covered with film at room temperature. Take some dough and place it on a lightly floured work surface. Shape into thin salami about 1 inch (2 cm) in diameter, then cut to a thickness of 1 inch (2 cm). Give a round shape and fry in hot oil 338 ° -347 ° F (170 ° -175 ° C). Drain and pass in the granulated sugar.