Cucciddatini - Sicilian Christmas Cookies ___

Cucciddatini - Sicilian Christmas Cookies

Ingredients

For the Cuccidatini:

  • 17.5 ounces (500 gr) of flour 00
  • 5.33 ounces (150 gr) of sugar
  • 5.33 ounces (150 gr) of margarine
  • ounces (5 gr) of baking powder
  • 5 tablespoons honey
  • 1 pound (400 gr) of dried figs
  • 1.75 ounces (50 gr) almonds, peeled and coarsely chopped
  • 1.75 ounces (50 gr) chopped walnuts
  • 1.75 ounces (50 gr) of roasted hazelnuts, coarsely chopped
  • 1.75 ounces (50 gr) pistachios
  • 1.75 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:

  1. Place figs in a bowl with marsala and chop them with a food processor, then cover with plastic wrap and set aside.
  2. Coarsely chop almonds, walnuts, hazelnuts and pistachios.
  3. Add the lemon and orange zest, cinnamon and cloves minced well.
  4. Add the figs in a saucepan and mix 2-3-tablespoons of honey.
  5. Cook it for a few minutes, incorporating a couple of tablespoons of water.
  6. When the filling gets very cold, add chocolate into small pieces and set aside.

Prepare the dough

  1. 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.
  2. Wrap the dough in plastic film and let rest in refrigerator for about 30 minutes.
  3. Roll out the dough, but  not too thin and cut into rectangles of 4 x 2 inches
  4. Put a spoonful of filling in the center of each rectangle and wrap the dough around itself to form the rolls.
  5. Score the surface in 2 - 3 points and bend slightly each piece like an arch (if you wish, you may not bend).
  6. Put the tiny coloured balls on a plate and lay the cucciddatini from the top, so they will remain stuck.
  7. Put the cucciddatini on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and bake at 390°F (200celsius) for 30-40 minutes.
  8. Let cool and then sprinkle with powdered sugar.