Cucciddatini - Sicilian Christmas Cookies
Buccellato, in dialect "cucciddatu" is a traditional dessert for the Christmas period prepared throughout the island and became a cornerstone of Sicilian cuisine. Usually in the form of ring is also packaged in smaller forms: cucciddatini, stuffed cookies. The ingredients, may vary from place to place, consisting of four different things: dried figs, almonds, walnuts, hazelnuts and pistachios. In addition, the combination with other products such as lemon, orange, cinnamon, vanilla and honey give this dessert a place of honor among the others and marks a contrast with the traditional panettone and pandoro which originated in northern Italy.
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Ingredients
For 1 Batch(es)
For the Cuccidatini:
- 17 1/2 ounces (500 gr) of flour 00
- 5 1/3 ounces (150 gr) of sugar
- 5 1/3 ounces (150 gr) of margarine
- ounces (5 gr) of baking powder
- 5 tablespoons honey
- 1 pound (400 gr) of dried figs
- 1 3/4 ounces (50 gr) almonds, peeled and coarsely chopped
- 1 3/4 ounces (50 gr) chopped walnuts
- 1 3/4 ounces (50 gr) of roasted hazelnuts, coarsely chopped
- 1 3/4 ounces (50 gr) pistachios
- 1 3/4 ounces (50 gr) of dark chocolate
- 1 packet of vanilla or 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
- 1 lemon, zest only
- 1 orange, zest only
- small stick of cinnamon powder
- 4 teaspoons cloves very finely divided
- colored sprinkles
- sugar
- 2 tablespoons Marsala wine
Directions
- For the stuffing:
- Place figs in a bowl with marsala and chop them with a food processor, then cover with plastic wrap and set aside.
- Coarsely chop almonds, walnuts, hazelnuts and pistachios.
- Add the lemon and orange zest, cinnamon and cloves minced well.
- Add the figs in a saucepan and mix 2-3-tablespoons of honey.
- Cook it for a few minutes, incorporating a couple of tablespoons of water.
- When the filling gets very cold, add chocolate into small pieces and set aside.
- Prepare the dough
- Mix flour with sugar, margarine, 2-3 tablespoons of honey, vanilla, baking powder and water as much as necessary to obtain a homogeneous and consistent mixture.
- Wrap the dough in plastic film and let rest in refrigerator for about 30 minutes.
- Roll out the dough, but not too thin and cut into rectangles of 4 x 2 inches
- Put a spoonful of filling in the center of each rectangle and wrap the dough around itself to form the rolls.
- Score the surface in 2 - 3 points and bend slightly each piece like an arch (if you wish, you may not bend).
- Put the tiny coloured balls on a plate and lay the cucciddatini from the top, so they will remain stuck.
- Put the cucciddatini on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and bake at 390°F (200celsius) for 30-40 minutes.
- Let cool and then sprinkle with powdered sugar.
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Reviews
Yes the the instructions do say to cook the figs with everything else. :) - rossella rago
Don't understand the instructions. Do you cook the figs with everything else? - Mary2