Fried Sicilian Cartocci

Sicilian cartocci are delicious traditional desserts, particularly loved for their crunchy exterior and soft filling. Here is the recipe:

Ingredients

• For the dough:

  • 500 g of durum wheat flour
  • 100 g of lard (or butter, for a non-traditional variant)
  • 80 g of sugar
  • 2 whole eggs
  • A small glass of Marsala
  • A pinch of salt
  • Grated zest of lemon or orange
  • Oil for frying

• For the filling:

  • 500 g of sheep’s ricotta (better if sieved)
  • 150 g of sugar
  • Chocolate drops or pieces of candied fruit as desired
  • Icing sugar for garnish

Preparation

1. Start by preparing the dough: mix the flour with the lard (or butter), sugar, eggs, Marsala, salt, and citrus zest until you get a smooth and homogeneous dough. Let the dough rest for about 30 minutes.

2. Roll out the dough until thin and cut out rectangles of about 15x10 cm.

3. Wrap each rectangle of dough around appropriately oiled metal cylinders (known as “cannelli” for cartocci), making sure that the ends overlap slightly.

4. Fry the cartocci in plenty of oil until golden and crispy, then let them drain and cool on paper towels. After that, carefully remove the metal cylinders.

5. For the filling, blend the sieved ricotta with the sugar and, if you wish, add the chocolate drops or pieces of candied fruit.

6. Fill the cartocci with the ricotta cream using a piping bag and sprinkle them with icing sugar before serving.

Curiosity

Cartocci are a specialty of Sicilian pastry that resembles the shape of cannoli, but they are different because they are completely closed and fried with an outer shell usually made of durum wheat flour. They are a symphony of contrasts, from the crunchy shell to the creamy heart of ricotta. Bringing them to the table is a real joy for the taste buds and a nice way to end a meal cheerfully.