Cartellate

Name: Cartellate
Prep time: 1 h
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 1 h 20 min
Yield: 8 servings
Cuisine: Pugliese
Ingredients: 500 g tipo 00 flour; 100 ml Extra virgin olive oil; 180 ml Dry white wine; 5 g Fine sea salt; 300 ml vincotto; 2 g Ground cinnamon; 1 l peanut oil; 40 g toasted almonds; 15 g coloured sugar sprinkles

Crisp, ribboned Apulian pastry rosettes fried in oil and steeped in rich vincotto or warm honey for Christmas.

🇮🇹Italy· Apulia

Prep: 60 min
Cook: 20 min
Total: 80 min
Servings: 8
Difficulty: Medium
Calories: 310 kcal

Ingredients

0 of 9 gathered

Servings

500 g tipo 00 flour — sifted
100 ml Extra virgin olive oil — warmed gently
180 ml Dry white wine — warmed gently
5 g Fine sea salt — dissolved in the wine
300 ml vincotto — cooked grape or fig must reduction
2 g Ground cinnamon — ground
1 l peanut oil — for deep frying
40 g toasted almonds — finely chopped
15 g coloured sugar sprinkles — diavolini, for traditional decoration

Equipment

•Pasta machine or rolling pin
•Fluted pastry wheel
•Wide heavy saucepan
•Slotted spoon
•Wire cooling rack

Nutrition

Per serving, approximate

Calories: 310 kcal
fat: 12 g
carbs: 46 g
fibre: 2 g
protein: 4 g
calories: 310 kcal

Instructions

1
Warm the olive oil and white wine together in a small pan until lukewarm.
2
Place the flour on a clean work surface and create a wide well in the centre.
3
Pour the salted oil and wine liquid into the well and gradually incorporate the flour.
4
Knead the dough vigorously for ten minutes until it becomes smooth, firm, and thoroughly elastic.
5
Wrap the dough tightly in cling film and let it rest at room temperature for thirty minutes.
6
Roll portions of dough through a pasta machine down to one millimetre thickness.
7
Cut the thin sheets with a fluted pastry wheel into strips three centimetres wide.
8
Fold each strip lengthwise, pinching edges together every two centimetres to create small pocket cavities.
9
Roll the pinched strip into a tight spiral rose, pressing the base joints firmly to seal.
10
Dry the shaped rosettes on clean tea towels at room temperature for six to eight hours.
11
Deep-fry the dried pastries in oil heated to 175°C for two minutes until crisp and lightly golden.
12
Warm the vincotto in a wide saucepan, dip each warm fried pastry briefly, and dress with almonds.

Chef's tips

Drying the shaped pastries thoroughly before frying is vital to prevent them from opening up and losing their pockets in hot oil. Keep the dough covered with a damp tea towel while rolling to stop it drying out prematurely. Do not overheat the vincotto, as boiling will make it overly sticky and bitter.

Ingredient substitutions

vincotto → wildflower honey warmed with orange zest, which is also traditional in parts of Apulia
peanut oil → light olive oil for authentic frying flavour

Storage

Store undipped fried pastries in an airtight tin for up to three weeks, or glazed cartellate in a covered container for five days.

Reheating

Do not reheat glazed cartellate, but warm undipped pastries in a 150°C oven for three minutes before dipping in freshly heated vincotto.

Common mistakes to avoid

•Rolling the dough too thickly, which makes the rosettes heavy and soft inside rather than crisp.
•Skipping the drying stage, causing the pinched rosettes to unravel completely upon hitting the hot oil.
•Boiling the vincotto too aggressively, which burns the concentrated fruit sugars and ruins the glaze.

Serving suggestions

Serve at room temperature arranged in pyramid stacks on a festive ceramic platter.Pair with an Apulian Moscato di Trani or a small glass of aged Primitivo dolce naturale.