photo credit: Barbara L. Hanson
A traditional Italian celebration occurs every March 19th and it is called St. Joseph’s Day. It is customary to eat Sfingi – also known as zeppole – on this day.
There are many types of sfingi. One type is much like fried bits of sweetened bread dough dusted with sugar. However, the traditional Italian “sfingi di San Giuseppe” is often made with ricotta cheese. They are delicious served warm, but they can also be cooled and filled with cream or whatever you like.
There is an Italian Festival in Houston, Texas every Fall and they make thousands of sfingi to the delight of all the visitors. If you would like to learn more about this festival, click here.
One nice thing about cooking sfingi is that if you have your oil hot enough, the little dough puffs will turn themselves over. All you have to do is take them out when they are golden brown.
To make the traditional Italian sfingi di San Giuseppe, combine 1 pound of ricotta cheese with 2 eggs, 2 tablespoons of white sugar and 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla. Then combine 1/2 cup of flour with 2 teaspoons of baking powder and fold this into the cheese mixture. Continue adding a little flour at a time until you have a nice thick batter.
When your oil is at about 375 degrees, drop the dough in by teaspoons and deep fry until golden brown. Remove with a slotted spoon and drain on a paper sack or paper towels.
A fun thing to do with these traditional Italian “doughnuts without holes” is to arrange them all in a pyramid on a platter. Then drizzle 1/4 cup of honey all over the pyramid and dust with 1/4 cup of powdered sugar.
There are many recipes for sfingi. Some call for yeast. Some have raisins. They are all wonderful and they may bring back memories of the old potato chip commercial …”Bet you can’t eat just one!” See the guys making these at a street fair here! Mangia Bene!
