Fried Desserts | Italian Inspired Recipes | Chestnut Flour
Traditional Italian carnival sweets - this time made with chestnut flour, which gives them delicate nutty flavour. So easy to make and so delicious!
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Crostoli are ribbons of deep-fried dough originated from Italy where they are prepared during the Carnival time. There are dozen of recipes as well as names for these fried sweets mostly made with regular ingredients you have in your pantry - flour, sugar, eggs and butter (such as our sweet pastry knots).
We made a twist and swap one part of plain flour for chestnut flour which make these crostoli super sweet and nutritiously richer that the original one. Let's see how to make these delicious Italian dessert.
First combine CHESTNUT (this flour tends to compress into lumps so be sure to sift it) and PLAIN flours, BAKING POWDER, SUGAR and SALT in a large bowl.
Make a well in the middle and add EGGS, MELTED BUTTER, RUM (or Amaretto) and GRATED ORANGE ZEST. Start stirring with a fork while incorporating flour into other ingredients. Tip the dough onto work surface and knead with your hands until you get a compact dough. Leave to rest for 30 minutes.
It's time for rolling crostoli so prepare a rolling pin and a pastry mat, or you can roll out on dusted work surface. Half the dough then roll out thinly (around 1mm). Using a pastry wheel cut rectangles (10x3cm) and make a cut in the middle of each piece. Thread one end of each rectangle through the slit to make a bow.
Try different ways of shaping crostoli: instead of cutting a slit in the centre, pinch and twist the centre of the strip. Also, cut 2-3 slits in the centre of the strip and deep-fry without twisting or looping.
To fry crostoli, fill a deep-frying pan with sunflower oil and set on a medium heat. When the oil is hot (around 170°C - 180°C), drop 2-3 crostoli into the oil. Fry for 1-2 minutes on each side then drain them with a slotted spoon to a plate lined with kitchen paper. Dust with some icing sugar once cooled.
Crostoli will be little soft but they crispen as they cool. These crostoli are great as they can last for a week if stored in airtight container.
Chestnut Flour CrostoliMAKES: 45 crostoli
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