Snowflakes

Snowflakes are delicious typical Neapolitan pastries, known for their softness and unique cream. Here’s the recipe for preparing Snowflakes.

Ingredients

• For the dough:

  • 500 g of type 00 flour
  • 60 g of sugar
  • 1 whole egg
  • 200 ml of warm milk
  • 60 g of soft butter
  • 25 g of fresh brewer’s yeast
  • 1 pinch of salt
  • Grated zest of 1 lemon

• For the cream:

  • 500 ml of milk
  • 150 g of sugar
  • 50 g of type 00 flour
  • 2 egg yolks
  • 1 sachet of vanillin or the seeds of a vanilla pod
  • Grated zest of 1 lemon

• To decorate:

  • Powdered sugar as needed

Preparation

1. Dissolve the brewer’s yeast in warm milk. In a bowl, combine the flour with sugar, add the egg, the soft butter, the lemon zest and the milk with dissolved yeast. Add a pinch of salt and start kneading until you obtain a smooth and elastic dough.
2. Let the dough rise in a warm place, free of drafts, covered with a cloth, for about 1-2 hours or until it doubles in volume.
3. While the dough is rising, prepare the cream. Heat the milk in a pot with the lemon zest. In another bowl, beat the egg yolks with the sugar and vanillin until they become light and fluffy. Add the sifted flour and mix until smooth.
4. Remove the lemon zest from the warm milk and pour the hot milk over the mixture of egg yolks, sugar, and flour a little at a time, stirring continuously.
5. Place the mixture back on the heat and cook the cream, stirring constantly, until it thickens. Once ready, transfer it to a bowl and cover it with plastic wrap in contact with the cream. Let it cool completely.
6. Take the risen dough and roll it out on a lightly floured surface. With a pastry cutter, cut out discs of about 8 cm in diameter.
7. Place a teaspoon of cream in the center of each disc and close them by forming a ball. Place the balls on a baking tray lined with parchment paper, cover them with a cloth and let them rise again for 30 minutes.
8. Bake the Snowflakes in a preheated oven at 180 °C for about 15-20 minutes, or until they are golden brown.
9. Remove the Snowflakes from the oven and let them cool. Once cold, dust them with powdered sugar.

Curiosity

Snowflakes are so named for their delicacy and their visual resemblance to fluffy snowballs, especially after being dusted with powdered sugar, reminiscent indeed of a snowy blanket. These delightful pastries were made famous by Pasticceria Poppella in Naples, becoming a symbol of Neapolitan confectionery.