Recipe: Sfinge di San Giuseppe (St. Joseph's Cream Puffs)

Celestino Drago los Angeles restaurant Food of southern italy

--Ricotta Filling
1 pound Ricotta
1/4 cup Semisweet chocolate finely chopped
2 tablespoon Mixed glaceed fruit, or citron or orange, finely chopped
1/4 cup Chopped pistachio nuts and/or toasted almonds
1 tablespoon Sugar

1 Quart olive oil
1/3 cup Powdered sugar

--Cream Puff Pastry
1 cup Flour
1 teaspoon Vanilla
1 cup Water
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup Butter, or 1/2 cup unsalted butter
1/4 cup Heavy whipping cream
4 Eggs, at room temperature

Powdered sugar

Heat olive oil to 350 degrees. Carefully drop Cream
Puff Pastry batter, by tablespoonfuls, into hot oil,
using finger or another spoon to dislodge dough. Fry
small batches or oil will cool off and fritters will be
soggy. Fritters will urn themselves over (as bottom of
fritter cooks it expands and becomes lighter than top,
which keeps fritters turning). If fritters don't turn,
turn with spoon. Fritters should almost triple in
volume. When fritters are golden brown, remove with
slotted spoon to dish lined with paper towels to drain
excess, oil.

Or tear open fritters and fill with Ricotta Filling and
dust with powdered sugar. Serve immediately. Fritters
are best hot; they do not keep well and cannot be
reheated successfully. Heap on plate and serve. Makes
about 25 fritters.

Note. Fritters may be eaten unfilled. After frying,
simply dust fritters generously with powdered sugar.

For cream puff pastry Place water, butter and sugar in
heavy saucepan and bring to boil over high heat. Add
flour all at once, lower heat, and stir vigorously with
wooden spoon until batter makes soft cohesive mass
that does not stick to sides of saucepan. Keep stirring
batter over low heat about 2 minutes. When dough is
quite cohesive and maintains ball shape as you spin it
around pan, remove pan from heat.

Transfer mass of dough to bowl to cool about 10
minutes. When tepid, add 1 egg at time, beating in
thoroughly. Batter should be firm enough to stand up
in peaks. More eggs will increase fluffiness. Do not
make dough too sot. Dough must hold shape readily
when pushed around with spoon. Before adding last
egg, test batter in hot oil.

Dough is best used just after making. Dough can be
stored, covered, in refrigerator up to 2 days. Let
dough come slowly to room temperature before using
and rebet dough.

For Ricotta Filling Combine ricotta, chocolate,
powdered sugar, vanilla, fruit and nuts in bowl and
mix well. Whip cream until thick and fold into other
ingredients in bowl. Filling can be made up to 1 day
ahead and stored in refrigerator.

In his book "The Food of Southern Italy," Carlo
Middione writes that there is a dish "without which no
Southern Italian could live: Sfinci di San Giuseppe."
As the name implies, the fritters, filled with ricotta,
are traditionally served on St. Joseph's Day. But
they're so delicious they make good eating any day of
the year.

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03-Jan-93 MM by Cathy Svitek

St. Joseph's Cream Puffs (Sfinge di San
Giuseppe)

From: LeiG@aol.com
Subject: St. Joseph's Cream Puffs (Sfinge di San Giuseppe)
Date: 7 Apr 1997 06:06:52 -0600
Sender: phill@news.rt66.com
ST JOSEPH'S CREAM PUFFS (Sfinge di San Giuseppe)
source: The Home Book of Italian Cooking
makes 24

1 cup hot water
1/2 cup butter
1 cup sifted flour
4 eggs
1/2 teaspoon grated lemon rind
1/2 teaspoon grated orange rind
24 candied or maraschino cherries

Boil water and butter in a saucepan, add sifted flour and stir constantly until smooth. Cook over medium flame until mixture leaves sides of pan clean, about 2 minutes, stirring constantly. Remove from heat and allow to cool slightly. add eggs 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Add grated rind and blend. drop by Tablespoons on ungreased cookie sheet 2 inches apart and bake in moderate oven 350 deg. until puffs are light, about 30 minutes. remove from oven and cut opening in the middle of the top. Cool thoroughly and fill with filling. Decorate the tops with
Filling:
1 lb ricotta
1 tablespoon honey
1 tablespoon grated orange rind
2 tablespoons grated sweet chocolate
Mash ricotta and honey, add orange rind and chocolate and blend until creamy. Fills 24 puffs. Store in refrigerator.
Sfinge de San Giuseppe

INGREDIENTS:

1lb. ricotta cheese
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
6 eggs
2 cups SELF- RISING flour

DIRECTIONS:

Mix ricotta cheese with sugar, vanilla and eggs. Mix in Self-Rising flour and beat until smooth. Heat oil to 370 degrees. Drop mixture by tablespoons a few at a time. Remove from oil when they reach a golden brown. Drain on absorbent paper. Sprinkle with confectioner's sugar, cinnamon sugar or honey.

Best when served warm. Enjoy!!!

Comments:

Made with Ricotta Cheese, these fried puffs are a delicious variation of
the traditional sfinge recipe.

This is a favorite in our family especially at the holidays.

Submitted by:

Roger MacLennan from his wife Pauline (Mazzone)
via Nana Cicero