~ Cook Like A Venetian
Zaleti ~Venetian cookies
Makes about 30 cookies
Serves 4 to 6
Ingredients
- ½ cup seedless raisins
- 1 glass dry white wine
- 1 cup yellow cornmeal
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- ¼ cup unsalted butter, at room temperature, cut in pieces
- ¼ cup sugar
- 1 large egg
- ¼ cup pine nuts
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- Pinch of salt
- 2 tablespoons Marsala or sweet wine
- Confectioner’s sugar for dusting
Put the raisins in a small bowl, cover with the white wine and soak for one hour.
Preheat oven to 350°F.
In a large bowl, combine the two flours and the baking powder and mix well. Add the butter, sugar and egg, mix with your hands to incorporate. Add the drained raisins, pine nuts, vanilla, salt and Marsala then mix until you have a soft dough. Using your hands, roll small pieces of dough into ovals and place them on two baking sheets covered with parchment paper. Flatten the cookies a little with your fingers. Bake in a preheated oven at 350°F for 25 to 30 minutes until golden. Remove from oven and leave to cool on wire racks until completely cooled. When cold, dust with confectioner’s sugar and serve.
Preheat oven to 350°F.
In a large bowl, combine the two flours and the baking powder and mix well. Add the butter, sugar and egg, mix with your hands to incorporate. Add the drained raisins, pine nuts, vanilla, salt and Marsala then mix until you have a soft dough. Using your hands, roll small pieces of dough into ovals and place them on two baking sheets covered with parchment paper. Flatten the cookies a little with your fingers. Bake in a preheated oven at 350°F for 25 to 30 minutes until golden. Remove from oven and leave to cool on wire racks until completely cooled. When cold, dust with confectioner’s sugar and serve.
Baicoli
Venetian Butter Cookies, great for dunking
Serves 8 to 10
Ingredients
- 500 g (4 cups) flour
- 50 g (1/4 cup) sugar
- 50 g (3 ½ tablespoons) butter, melted
- 1 egg white, beaten
- 15 g (1 ½ tablespoon) fresh yeast
- 600 ml (2 ½ cups) milk
- Salt
Pour the flour into a large bowl, then the sugar and a pinch of salt and mix well. Add the butter, a little at a time, then the beaten egg white and yeast, which has been blended in a little warm milk. Mix well while adding the rest of the milk. Once the ingredients are mixed, cover with a kitchen cloth and leave to rest to rise for at least 2 hours. Divide the dough into 5 parts. Form each piece of dough into 30-cm (11-inch) long cylinder and place them on a greased cookie sheet. Bake in a preheated oven at 180°C (350°F ) until golden brown, 10 to 15 minutes. Keep an eye on them making sure they do not become too dark. Remove from the oven and leave to cool for 3 to 4 hours. Slice the rolls with a sharp knife at an angle into thin slices and arrange on a cookie sheet. Bake again in a preheated oven at 180°C (360°F) for 10 to 12 minutes.
Leave to cool and store in a glass airtight container. Serve with Cypriot wine or Muscat or dip them mascarpone cream.
Leave to cool and store in a glass airtight container. Serve with Cypriot wine or Muscat or dip them mascarpone cream.
Mascarpone Cream
Serves 4
Ingredients
- 4 large eggs
- ½ cup sugar
- 2 teaspoons Marsala
- 1 cup mascarpone
- Cocoa powder, for sprinkling
Instructions
This recipe for mascarpone cream requires fresh quality ingredients. Start by separating the egg whites from the yolks and place the yolks in a bowl. Add the sugar and beat the ingredients with a whisk until the mixture is light and fluffy. Put to the side. In a separate bowl, beat the Marsala and the mascarpone until smooth, then add to the egg yolks and mix well. In another clean bowl, whip the egg whites until they reach the soft peak stage. Add the egg whites to the mascarpone mixture, folding gently in the same direction with a spatula and from the bottom of the bowl. Serve the cream in small glasses and sprinkle with cocoa powder.