Venezia: Freedom! And a recipe for Carteddate al Miele, or Fritters with Honey

Carteddate are Carnival fritters, and are quite similar to cenci, though they do gain a special touch from honey that brings some of the Greek pastries to mind. To serve 6 you'll need:

• 4 1/5 cups (500 g) all purpose unbleached flour
• 3/4 of an ounce (20 g) of live yeast (the kind sold in cakes in the dairy section of the supermarket)
• Marsala or white wine
• Powdered sugar
• 1/3 cup olive oil
• Honey (2 cups)
• Salt
• Powdered sugar with a pinch of powdered cinnamon
• Oil for frying

Dissolve the yeast in a half cup of lightly salted warm water. Make a mound of the flour on your work surface and scoop a well in it; stir in the yeast, olive oil, and enough wine to obtain a fairly firm dough, which you should let rise, covered, in a warm place for 2 hours.

Roll the dough out into a very thin sheet and use a serrated pastry wheel to cut it into strips that are 2 inches (5 cm) wide and at least 20 inches (50 cm) long. Fold the strips in half to obtain a strip that's only an inch wide, and pinch the opposing edges of the strip together at 1-inch (2.5 cm) intervals. Roll the strips up into spirals that will resemble roses, and fry them until golden in hot oil. Drain them on absorbent paper, pinch edge side down to help the oil drain.

Gently heat the honey in a second pot; as soon as it begins to boil dip the roses into it, turning them gently, and dust them with the cinnamon-laced powdered sugar. Enjoy!

Carnival Recipes