On Tuesday, February 21, Martedì Grasso, the Italian Language Program, and Global Studies joined forces to organize the most beautiful Carnevale night at the University of Chicago.
Our night started out with a brief presentation of Carnevale in Italy, and especially the famous Carnevale of Viareggio, Venezia, and Ivrea. Meanwhile, we had set up three main stands: the “arts and crafts” stand, where students could decorate their Venetian masks; the “frittelle” stand, where students had all ingredients to prepare the mixture for frittelle; and the “chiacchiere” stand, where students learned to stretch the dough of chiacchiere with an authentic Italian pasta maker.
Everything was made even more cheerful by our students’ laughter and the sound of Sanremo 2023 songs.
Useless to say that frittelle and chiacchiere went like hot … fried dough! Check out our gallery to see more pictures of the event!
If you want to try your hand at making these delicious pastries, scroll down!
Frittelle di Carnevale
Ingredients
- 4 eggs
- 150 g granulated sugar
- 250 g whole milk
- 1 pinch salt
- zest from one untreated lemon
- 500 g unbleached flour or 00 flour
- 16 g baking powder
- granulated sugar or powdered sugar
Instructions
- Whip the eggs with the sugar until frothy.
- Add the pinch of salt, grated lemon zest, milk, and, little by little, the flour.
- Stir until smooth; add the baking powder and mix.
- Heat the oil for frying in a large frying pan, then dip a spoonful of the mixture into it.
- Fry for a few minutes, turning the frittelle until they are well puffed and golden brown on all sides.
- Drain with the help of a skimmer.
- Dip them in granulated sugar or dust them with powdered sugar.
- Eat them while they’re still warm!
Chiacchiere di Carnevale
(also called “bugie”, “cenci”, “frappe”, “sprelle”, “cròstoli”)
Ingredients
- 1 egg
- 30 g sugar
- 30 g butter
- 20 g of rum or other liquor
- 70 g white wine
- a pinch of salt
- 300 g unbleached flour
- 8 g baking powder
- 1/2 lemon zest
- powdered sugar to taste
Instructions
- Whip the eggs with the sugar until frothy.
- Add melted butter, grappa, white wine, lemon zest, and a pinch of salt while stirring.
- Now start adding some flour and baking powder. Keep stirring with a fork.
- Add more flour and when the mixing becomes more elastic, start working it with your hand while you add the remaining flour.
- Knead the dough vigorously for five minutes until all flour is incorporated and the dough is elastic and stretchy (like pizza dough).
- Form a ball, cover it with clingfilm, and rest in a cool, dry place for at least 20/30 minutes.
For oven-baked chiacchiere
- Now, roll out the dough evenly, making a sheet of 2-3 millimeters, using a rolling pin or a pasta machine (until number 5). Your sheet should be as thin as possible without breaking apart when you pick it up.
- Using a pastry wheel, cut long strips in a rectangular shape or rectangles cut in the center.
- Place your chiacchere on a pan covered with baking paper and bake in a static oven for 8-10 minutes at 350 F or until you see bubbles forming on the surface and the chiacchiere turning golden.
- Take them out of the oven, and let them cool for some minutes; then sprinkle powdered sugar with a small strainer and serve.
For deep-fried chiacchiere
- Now, roll out the dough evenly, making very thin sheets, using pasta machine (until number 7). Your sheet should be as thin as possible without breaking apart when you pick it up – it should be transparent.
- Using a pastry wheel, cut long strips in a rectangular shape or rectangles cut in the center.
- Fry your chiacchere in vegetable oil at 340 F until you see bubbles forming on the surface and the chiacchiere turning just a little golden. Don’t over-fry them.
- Take them out of the oven, and let them cool for some minutes; then sprinkle powdered sugar with a small strainer and serve.
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