Buccellati
Rich Sicilian Christmas pastries filled with spiced dried figs, toasted walnuts, dark chocolate, and citrus zest.
- Prep
- 45 min
- Cook
- 30 min
- Total
- 75 min
- Servings
- 10
- Difficulty
- Medium
- Calories
- 360 kcal
Equipment
- •Food processor
- •Rolling pin
- •Baking sheet
- •Baking parchment
- •Kitchen scissors
- •Pastry brush
Nutrition
Per serving, approximate
- Calories
- 360 kcal
- fat
- 15 g
- carbs
- 52 g
- fibre
- 4 g
- protein
- 5 g
- calories
- 360 kcal
Instructions
- 1
Rub the chilled lard into the flour, sugar, and baking powder until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs.
- 2
Add the milk gradually and knead lightly until a smooth dough forms.
- 3
Wrap the dough in cling film and chill in the fridge for at least 45 minutes.
- 4
Pulse the dried figs, drained raisins, toasted walnuts, and Marsala in a food processor to a coarse paste.
- 5
Transfer the paste to a bowl and mix in the chocolate, marmalade, orange zest, and cinnamon.
- 6
Preheat the oven to 180°C and line a large baking sheet with baking parchment.
- 7
Roll out the chilled dough on a lightly floured surface into a long rectangle about 4 mm thick.
- 8
Shape the filling into long cylinders and place them along the centre of the pastry.
- 9
Fold the pastry over the filling to seal, trimming any excess dough to form neat logs.
- 10
Join the ends to make rings, then snip small decorative notches along the edges with kitchen scissors to expose the filling.
- 11
Bake for 25 to 30 minutes until the pastry turns pale golden and crisp.
- 12
Cool completely on a wire rack before dusting lightly with icing sugar.
Chef's tips
Traditional strutto gives the pastry its signature crumbly melt-in-the-mouth texture. Do not purée the fig filling completely smooth; keeping small chunks of nuts and dried fruit gives the best bite.
Ingredient substitutions
- lard (strutto) → cold unsalted butter in equal weight
- Marsala wine → fresh orange juice
Storage
Store in an airtight tin at cool room temperature for up to two weeks.
Reheating
Serve at room temperature, or warm gently in an oven at 150°C for 5 minutes to refresh the pastry.
Common mistakes to avoid
- •Rolling the pastry too thin, which causes it to split open during baking.
- •Over-processing the filling into a purée rather than a coarse textured paste.
- •Cutting the decorative notches too deep so the pastry collapses.
Serving suggestions
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