Venice Carnival Pastries
Everybody has heard of the Carnevale di Venezia which is also celebrated in many Italian regions. But not many know that we do have delicious Venice Carnival Pastries that we make specifically to celebrate Carnevale.
I have wonderful memories of my friends and me dressing up in costume and going out to see the “Carri” – Carnival Parad in my hometown Bassano Del Grappa. Then coming back home and eating tons of Crostoli and “Frìtole” – “Frittelle” in Italian.
These Venice Carnival Pastries are a simple mix of flour, egg and butter with some cheeky ingredients to make them unique. Both are traditionally deep-fried, which makes them delicious but deadly for me and any other folk who can’t have fatty fried food. So what you’ll see here is once again an adaptation of these childhood treats of mine with an overall healthier twist. And some suggestions on how to make them vegan!
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Carnevale di Venezia
First, if you haven’t been to Venice, you should definitely plan a visit! I recommend coming in either September/October or March/April as prices for accommodation and transport are a bit cheaper. There are fewer visitors, and the weather is lovely. However, if you like busy colourful festivals with beautiful costumes and delicious street food…February is when Carnevale di Venezia is on and it’s your time to shine 🙂
A bit of history for you:
The Carnevale di Venezia is an annual festival usually taking place in February. It began during the Republic of Venice in 1162 and became official during the Renaissance. The baroque carnival preserved the prestigious image of Venice and was very famous during the eighteenth century. However, under the rule of the later Emperor of Austria, Francis II, the festival was outlawed entirely in 1797 and the use of masks became strictly forbidden. After a long absence, the Carnival returned in 1979 and is now world-famous for its elaborate costumes and masks.
But I thought they gave a good idea of what we do to decorate our streets during the Carnival period 🙂
One of the most important events is the contest for la maschera più bella (“the most beautiful mask”), judged by a panel of international costume and fashion designers.
Masks have always been an important part of the Venetian carnival and Maskmakers (mascherari) enjoyed a high position in society. Several distinct styles of masks are worn in the Venice Carnival inspired by local folklore characters like Bauta, Colombina, Pantalone and many more.
The Carnevale di Venezia is known worldwide as one of the best carnival celebrations happening to this day. It’s worth experiencing at least once in a lifetime!
And now, let’s talk about food!
Oven Baked Fritole or Castagnole
Fritole is the pinnacle of the Venice Carnival Pastries. They were invented during the Renaissance and were declared the national sweet of the Republic of Venice in 1700. Yes, they’re that important! Fritole are soft and filling little balls of fried dough and they were the best street food you could find. The “Fritoleri” would prepare them outside on wooden tables with a mix of flour, egg, sugar, pine nuts and raisins. Fry them in big metal pots and sell them directly on the streets still warm and sizzling. This peculiar business of the Fritoleri was then passed down from generation to generation. It was an art form if you ask me!
Now, we’re not prepping the Fritole in the streets and we’re definitely not using pork fat to fry them as the traditional recipe calls for. We’re gonna bake them in the oven and replace some of the ingredients to make them more accessible to everybody. Enjoy!
Oven baked Fritole
Equipment
- Oven
- Oven tray with baking paper
- 2 Medium and small mixing bowls
- Electric mixer
Ingredients
- 200 gr Wholewheat flour
- 50 gr Coconut flour you can use full wholewheat flour
- 50 gr Vegetable Butter I use olive oil butter as it's better for my acid reflux but any, including animal derived butter, would do!
- 45 gr Sultana or raisins
- 40 gr Cane sugar
- 20 gr Pine nuts
- 8 gr Bicarbonate of soda
- 2 Medium eggs or substitute with aquafaba
- 5 tbsp Grappa the traditional recipe calls for the Grappa liquor to soak the sultanas in but you can use water or orange juice
- Half Unwaxed lemon zest
- Splash Vegetable milk or other animal-derived milks
- Splash Vanilla extract
Instructions
- First, measure your sultana, add them to a glass or small container, then pour the liquid of choice between Grappa, water or orange juice into the container. Make sure the liquid is fully covering the sultanas. Set aside for at least 10 minutes. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees, 160 if on fan setting.
- While you wait for the sultanas to soften, add all the dry ingredients with the lemon zest to your medium mixing bowl. In a separate bowl whip the eggs with the sugar, vanilla extract and a splash of milk. Once the eggs are foamy slowly add them to the dry ingredients, then add the butter. Dry the sultanas and add them to the dough mix together with the pine nuts.
- Knead the dough until it's a firm but springy and slightly wet mass. If the dough it's too crumbly you can add a bit of milk or a bit of the sultana-flavoured orange juice if you used it.
- Shape your dough into little balls – about 3-4 cm in diameter and lay them on an oven tray lined with baking paper. Bake for about 15 minutes.
- Your oven-baked Fritole are ready for you to enjoy 🙂 Like the Crostoli you can dust with a bit of icing sugar to enhance the sweetness!Store in an air-tight container and consume within 4-5 days.
Oven-baked Crostoli
Crostoli come from an even earlier time, we’re talking Roman Empire! These were prepared in time to celebrate the “Saturnali” which is the ancient version of Carnevale. Crostoli were very easy to prepare. They were made in big quantities and distributed to the population to last for the entirety of Lent. These have a very similar mix to the Fritole but no sultana or nuts. Instead of a soft pastry, we’re aiming at thin and airy sheets with a good crunch factor. These are also traditionally fried but as mentioned above, the Cheeky Green Bean is about making delicious healthy snacks. Happy baking!
Oven-baked Crostoli
Equipment
- Oven
- Oven tray with baking paper
- Medium mixing bowl
- Rolling Pin
- Zigzag dough cutter or knife any tool that you can use to cut the Crostoli to shape
Ingredients
- 250 gr Wholewheat flour
- 40 gr Vegetable butter or animal derived butter
- 2 Medium egg or substitute with acquafaba
- 2 tbsp Cane Sugar I prefer cane or brown sugar but white sugar works too – make sure to add a little less as white sugar can be a bit sweeter.
- Unwaxed lemon zest
- splash Vanilla extract
- splash Grappa or Rum Optional
- Icing sugar Optional – to finish
- splash Vegetable Milk
- pinch Salt
Instructions
- In your mixing bowl add all the dry ingredients with lemon zest. Mix thoroughly and add the butter, vanilla extract, the liquor of choice (optional) and eggs – if you're using aquafaba calculate a bit less quantity and whip it up first to avoid the dough being too wet. Mix first with a fork and then with your hands on a clean surface.The dough should have a firm consistency with a crumbly texture. If it's too dry you can adjust it by adding a bit of milk.
- Once you're happy with your dough, wrap it in foil and place it in the fridge for 20 minutes. This is just so the dough can "relax". While you wait, preheat the oven to 180 degrees, 160 if on a fan setting.
- Take the dough out of the fridge and start shaping your Crostoli. With a rolling pin flatten the dough on a lightly floured surface. The thinner they are the crunchier but we need to make sure they're thick enough not to break so we're aiming at an even 3-5 mm all over. If you have a pasta machine/ sheeting machine then I would suggest using it. Don't worry if they are a bit thicker, they're just gonna turn out softer once cooked 🙂Take your knife or cutter and cut the dough into even rectangles. The original Crostoli is traditionally sliced with a zigzag cutter (tortellini cutter) but you can use anything you have available in the kitchen.
- Make a central vertical cut – following the length of the Crostoli – make sure not to cut the Crostoli in two, it's just a little scar to help the dough cook and the Crostoli take their final form. Lay your Crostoli on an oven tray layered with baking paper and sprinkle them with a little milk. If you have a brush, you can use that to cover more surface without wetting the dough too much.
- Bake for 10 minutes. Make sure to keep an eye on them as they can easily burn! When they're slightly browned and little bubbles and bumps have formed on the surfaces, your Crostoli are fully cooked.
- Let cool for a minute and top with a dust of icing sugar. Enjoy!Store in an airtight container and consume within 3 days.
Cheeky tips
See all snacks and sweet treats from the Cheeky Green Bean.
Discover more recipes from Veneto, my Italian region! Like this Pumpkin Risotto.
Try the Venice Carnival Pastries with the original Grappa Poli from Bassano del Grappa.
