Sfinge In English
Meri Thilmony
For Palm Sunday and Easter this year I made my Easter Bread (one batch for Palm Sunday and one for Easter) and Chocolate Babka in addition to these sfinge. What special Easter recipes did you make this year?
Step 1: For the filling: at least three days before serving, mix drained ricotta, vanilla and sugar together. Move the mixture to a food processor (I used a small Kitchen Aid chopper) and mix until the filling is smooth and is the right consistency. Depending on the size of your food processor or chopper, you may need to mix in small batches.
Step 2: Fold in the mini chocolate chips, cover loosely and store at least overnight (better yet two nights) in the refrigerator. When ready to fill, transfer the filling to a gallon size Ziploc bag make a 1/2 inch cut on one corner of the Ziploc bag. Use as a pastry bag to fill the chocolate chip cookie cups.
Step 3: For the dough: Mix the flour, salt and baking soda in medium bowl; set aside. In a large saucepan or small stock pot, heat the water, butter and lard. Let the mixture come to a boil and then remove the pot from the heat. Add all the flour mixture at once and mix vigorously with a wooden spoon until incorporated. Return the pot to a medium to high heat for about 5 minutes while still mixing continuously; this will dry out the mixture and the dough pulls away from the sides of the pan. Remove the dough from heat and let cool for 10 minutes. Add the eggs one at a time and beat into the dough to combine before repeating with the remaining eggs.
Sfenj (or sfinge) is a free-form doughnut that originated from Muslim Andalusia in Spain, where it was called isfenğ. From Spain the crispy and bubbly doughnut spread with Jews and Muslims after the expulsion to the Maghreb. Moroccan Jews make these for Hanukkah, and they are as simple as they are good.
Here in the Ditmars area, there are two places that make excellent sfinge and zeppoli. First is La Guli Bakery, home to amazing Sicilian sweets. Their zeppoli are made with a light and somewhat crisp, round cream puff, filled with custard and cherries. The custard is also quite light, and the cherries are tastier than your average maraschino cherry. I love the ridges on the top part of the cream puff.
Their sfinge go the extra mile with the addition of preserved citrus rind and a candied cherry. The cannoli cream is sweet and delicious with the little chocolate chips and a pleasantly thick texture. I like the more free form shape of the cream puff, too.
Meg Cotner was trained as a harpsichordist and now works as a freelance writer and editor. She is the author of "Food Lovers' Guide to Queens," and is a skilled and avid home cook, baker, and preserver.
Place water, sugar, salt and butter into a medium saucepan and bring to a boil. Remove the saucepan from the heat, add the flour all at once and beat vigorously with a wooden spoon. Place the batter over medium heat and keep stirring until the batter pulls away from the sides of the pan. Allow to cool briefly, then add the baking powder and mix well. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well between additions so that the eggs are well incorporated. Cover the batter with a cloth and allow it to rest for hour.
To make the ricotta filling, place the ricotta in a mixing bowl along with the sugar, the vanilla and optional orange zest. Beat well until smooth, then fold in the chocolate chips. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.
To fill the sfinge with the ricotta filling: Place the ricotta cream into a pastry bag fitted with a round tip. Press gently into the side of the sfinge and pipe the ricotta cream into the center which will be hollow.
Below is my sfinge di San Giuseppe recipe. I baked these. These baked sfinge turn out VERY light and are very delicate. Next time, I think I will fry them, they might be a little sturdier to handle. Makes about 24- 2 inch size sfinges.
Put water, butter, granulated sugar, lemon rind, and salt in a large saucepan. Bring to a boil, and as soon as the butter has melted, remove from heat. Add the flour all at once, stirring constantly and with vigor.
Return the pan to the heat, and stir constantly until the mixture forms a ball and comes away from the sides of the pan. Cook just a little longer (1-2 min,) stiring all the time until you hear a slight sizzling, frying sound. Remove the pan from the heat, and cool slightly.
Add the eggs, one at a time. Be sure that each egg is thoroughly blended into the mixture before you add the next. Stir until smooth and thoroughly blended. Stir, stir, stir then add the vanilla and stir some more. Cover the dough and let it stand for 15 to 20 minutes.
Baked version: Preheat the oven to 400 F. Drop the dough by heaping tablespoonfuls (pile high because they deflate when you take them out of the oven) on a parchment-lined sheet, leaving about 1.5 inches between the sfinge. Bake for 20 minutes, until golden brown. Remove from oven and cool. I piped mine out in the pictures below but I think using a heaping Tbls piled high is better.
Fried version: In a heavy, 3-quart pot, heat the vegetable oil until a deep-frying thermometer registers 350 degrees F. Carefully drop rounded tablespoonfuls of the batter into the oil, about 6 at a time. (There should be enough room in the pot for them to float.) Turning as necessary, until golden brown on all sides, about 6 minutes. Remove with a skimmer and drain on paper towels. Repeat with the remaining batter allowing the oil to return to 350 degrees F before continuing.
"With A Good Eye" heroine, Luna Levi does not hide her love of donuts. When she feels she's at rock bottom, she heads to the bakery for a fresh sugary treat (and maybe even meets the love of her life there). Still, when Hanukah rolls around in the novel, it's Moroccan sfinge she most craves. Full disclosure: the photo is one I took in Timna Park outside of Eilat in January and not Morocco, but it's how I imagine Morocco may look.
Back to Luna. Who can blame her for her love of all things sfinge? Here's Luna's recipe if next Hanukah, you wish to try out this traditional Moroccan Hanukah treat, in addition to your regular donut. If you begin now, you will have perfected sfinge by December.
Luna Levi's recipe for Moroccan Sfinge (Luna doesn't actually have time to bake, but her best friend Aiden Betel has been nudging her to try this recipe and her soon-to-be-sister-in-law, Stephanie Baker has perfected it, though she doubles it, of course).
The Feast of San Giuseppe started in the south, in Sicily, Apulia and,Abruzzo. March 19, St Joseph's Day is traditionally celebrated with alarge feast. Since it is during Lent the feast usually means the food ismeatless. The special sweets called zeppole di San Giuseppe, sfinge diSan Giuseppe, fritelle, sfinci, Italian zeppole, or bigne di SanGuiseppe are always present. Sometimes they are filled with sweetenedricotta or pastry cream.
From Debbie Waugh: Mamma's recipe
My greatgrandmother, Mamma, had a brother named Sal. He had a son who had adaughter. That is Debbie. We are so distantly related that I'm not evensure what we are, I think we are 4th cousins.
Anyway, through themagic of Facebook my mom and Debbie found one another and stayed incontact with each other until my mom passed away.
When I was akid Mamma always made sfinges on Christmas Eve, Easter Sunday, and TheFeast of Saint Joseph. That was it, we seldom got them any other time ofthe year, no matter how much we pleaded and begged. I really loved sfingesbut not a one of us had enough sense to write down Mamma's recipe beforeshe passed away.
Not writing the recipe down wasn't so bad because grandma made themas well and she used almost the same recipe Mamma used. My mom did write grandma's recipe down.
One of the things to consider is that back in Italy 100 plus years agothere was no Karo corn syrup. In all likelihood just sugar and cinnamonwere used but it is also possible that honey was used.
WhenItalian immigrants migrated to America they weren't wealthy people. Karosyrup would have been a viable alternative to honey, if it was used,and a lot more affordable.
If you do a goggle search on sfingeyou are going to get a lot of hits for zeppole as well. Many of thezeppole recipes are simply pate a choux and not at all like sfinge. Notthat there is anything wrong with that, I love pate a choux, but pate achoux is very different from sfinge or zeppole. Sfinge are a batter verysimilar to fritter batter.
While I did commit to making theserecipes as they are, I won't eat Karo corn syrup. If I could find a goodorganic corn syrup, maybe. Instead I used honey.
While I was making these I remembered that, both, mamma and grandma used a pot to deep-fry on the stove top. What reminded me was that after I dropped the first one in the batter stuck to the holes in the fryer basket, and I thought to myself, that's why they did these on the range-top.
So if you use a deep fryer be aware that you will have to use a metal spatula to release them from the bottom of the fryer basket. Be careful and do it slowly so you don't splash hot oil all over yourself.
"I am of Sicilian descent and my Grandmother worked in a family bakery in Cefal. That bakery is still in existence, but what I am looking for is a recipe for something called 'sfinge'. It is similar to a zeppole".
Thank you! I think this peak is one of the most impressive of the Carnic Alps, and this is probably the best point of view to admire it. I'm not 100% sure but I think that roof ( the eye ) has been climbed in the 90's ( Mazzilis? ) because I know there are extreme routes ( VII/VIII ) on the face of the sphinx.
Ciao!
Fabrizio, I just gave you the editing rights on Creta Grauzaria page. If you find it appropriater, please add any information. For example: about A. Ferrucci route, about harded climbing routes etc.
Cheers!
Thank you! The route description is ready, maybe I'll post it today. Creta Grauzaria is very popular among climbers, althuogh the rock it's not everywhere good, and the normal route to Cima della Sfinge is one of the most famous.
Ciao!