Zipulas: Almost every Italian town and region has some specialty for Carnevale, the revels people hold to steel themselves for the privations of Lent (also known as Mardigras or Shrove Tuesday). This recipe is Sardinian, and though the ingredient list doesn't call for them, I've seen them with pastel-shaded confetti (candied almonds, not paper) pressed into them. To serve 6-8, you'll need:
Prep Time: 45 minutes
Cook Time: 60 minutes
Ingredients:
- 8 1/3 cups (1 k) all purpose flour
- 2 eggs
- 2 potatoes
- 2 oranges
- 1 cup (250 ml) of warm milk
- A shot of aquavit
- An ounce (30 g) live yeast (baker's yeast of the kind sold in the refrigerated section of the super market)
- Half a packet of saffron
- Powdered sugar
- Oil for frying
- A pinch of salt
Preparation:
Boil the potatoes in lightly salted water, peel them when a skewer penetrates easily, and put them through a potato ricer. Combine them with the flour, eggs, saffron, the juice of the oranges, and aquavit. Dissolve the yeast in the milk and work it into the dough; knead the dough energetically, until it is smooth and elastic (add a little more milk if need be). Cover it and put it in a warm place until it doubles in volume.
Moisten your hands, pull off egg-sized bits of dough, and fry them in hot oil until golden. Drain them on absorbent paper, dust them with powdered sugar, and serve.
Moisten your hands, pull off egg-sized bits of dough, and fry them in hot oil until golden. Drain them on absorbent paper, dust them with powdered sugar, and serve.
