Ingredients
For dough
1 1/2 sticks (room temperature) butter
2/3 cups sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 cups flour
Filling
1/2 pound dried prunes (or half a box of "Sunskist" dried prunes)
19 oz jar of maraschino cherries
1 small can of pineapples, drained and chopped
3/4 cup of chopped walnuts
1 teaspoon of sugar
A pinch of salt
For frosting:
Confectioner sugar
Water
Vanilla extract or lemon juice for flavoring
Directions
For the dough:
o Add sugar to the butter. Mix well.
o Add to the mixture 1 egg, 1 teaspoon vanilla, 2 cups flour.
o Divide the dough into 2. Shape into balls.
o Chill the dough balls.
For the filling:
o Steam 1/2 box of prunes for 2-3 minutes. Let them cool.
o Drain 1 9 oz jar maraschino cherries, remove stems and chop.
o Drain 1 small can of pineapple, then chop.
o Chop walnuts; set aside, 3/4 cup.
o Mix all the fruits together including the chopped prunes.
o Take the 2 balls of dough and roll them out making 2 jelly rolls.
o Fill the rolls with the fruit mixture.
o Slide the 2 rolls on a parchment lined cookie sheet.
o Bake at 350 degrees F. till loaves are golden brown.
o Remove from oven and frost with a confectioner sugar frosting of sugar and water and vanilla or lemon flavoring.
Notes
Ronald Ciarlo notes that this cookie loaf is very popular in Rhode Island amongst Italian Americans. This recipe was often made by his maternal cousin, Dolores DeMeo, who was born in Itri, Latina. This contributor believes the pastry is actually of Neapolitan origin because the majority of Italian Americans in Rhode Island trace their ancestry to the Campania region.... Photo: Mary Melfi.
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