Last week G. and Fino scoured the web looking for blueberry donut recipes and settled on this one from Emeril. The results were lousy and we were all disappointed.
But just as Fino was headed back to the computer to search for another donut recipe, I remembered my grandmother's zeppole recipe. My grandmother made little donut hole-type fried dough (zeppoles) every year for the Feast of St. Joseph (March 19 for those unfamiliar with Catholic feast days). Zeppoles are fried in a vat of oil and rolled in sugar and are the BEST when eaten while still warm (actually, they were never around the kitchen long enough to cool down anyhow).
My brother and I referred to zeppoles as "Italian donuts" and they may actually be the reason I don't care for regular donuts. Zeppoles are soooo much better.
I didn't have the recipe for zeppoles but I knew my mother had my grandmother's recipe and suggested to G. that she email her to ask for it.
The recipe, like many from my grandmother (she died when G. was a baby), didn't have precise measurements for the ingredients so my mom did her best to guesstimate amounts and annotate the recipe for G. to make it easier to follow.
The results?
As tasty as I remember!
G. made the zeppoles recipe by herself and even if they weren't as round as my grandmother and mother used to make, they were just as tasty.
There have been times in my life when having a large Italian family has been a challenge with the many family obligations (I can't even begin to count the number of weddings, anniversaries, baptisms, confirmations, school graduations, etc. I was obligated to attend as a kid), the gossip, the family dynamics, etc. that come with any large group of people. But when it comes to food, my grandmother and her sisters were some of THE BEST cooks and bakers. Life was centered around the kitchen for them (actually every event and visit to a family member's house involved food) and to this day I can honestly say that the best meals and baked goods I have ever eaten were made by my family.
This photo was taken at my family's annual "Cousins Connection" party we had a few weeks ago. My grandmother was one of 13 children (all deceased now except for one sister) and they all had a bunch of kids, and so on. So like I said, I'm from a large Italian family.
So I'll share with you the Merenda Family Zeppole Recipe because really, it's darn good.
Zeppole Recipe
1 3/4 cups all purpose flour
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup warm tap water
2 1/2 tsp active dry yeast
4 cups vegetable oil for frying
Confectioners’ sugar for sprinkling – or granulated sugar
Note from my mother: *My Mother and I double the recipe because we used to eat them while we made them! My mother and I liked them with raisins but you can add blueberries or just keep them plain.
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Mix flour and salt together and set aside.
Pour water into a medium bowl and whisk in the yeast. Stir in the salted flour with a rubber spatula until you have a rather wet dough.
Cover bowl loosely with plastic wrap and let dough rise at room temperature for about an hour, or until dough is double in size and very puffy.
Heat oil to 375 degrees and line cookie sheets with brown paper for draining.
Dip a tablespoon into the hot oil, then quickly use it to spoon up some of the risen dough. Use another spoon to scrape the dough off into the hot oil.
Fry no more than two or three at a time. Fry until they are a deep golden color. Drain on prepared cookie sheets with brown paper.
Dust generously with confectioners’ sugar before serving. We always used granulated sugar as well.
Makes about 2 dozen zeppoles.
Oh, and the kids were curious about the history of zeppoles and I came across this bit of info I thought I'd share here as well:
- Also called "St. Joseph Day cakes," zeppoles are a part of the St. Joseph Day celebration on March 19th.
Some say that the tradition of St. Joseph’s Day began in Sicily, during the Middle Ages. There was a severe drought. The people prayed for St. Joseph, their patron saint, to intervene. They promised him that if he answered their prayers and brought rain, they would prepare a big feast in his honor.
Their prayers were answered and the rains came. True to their word, the people of Sicily prepared a banquet and placed huge banquet tables for the poor of the town to enjoy. The day is a day of generosity and kindness. It was not only a way for the people of Sicily to thank St. Joseph for answering their prayers, but a way to share their good fortune with the poor of the town.
I'm a fan of the "anytime you like" bit.
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