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Fritters
Rose d'oriente
Rose D'Oriente (Campanian sweet Fritters Topped with Pistachio Nuts and Orange Zest)
Originated from: Sorrento, Campania
Occasion: Easter
Contributed by: Marisa Pastore (her mother's recipe, Mrs. Immacolatina Guida)

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Ingredients

FOR DOUGH
2 eggs
2 tablespoons of vegetable oil (Becel vegetable oil the best)
about 1/2 teaspoon of salt
Flour, as much as is needed to make a soft dough (about 1 cup)
1 teaspoon Magic baking powder

FOR FRITTER TOPPING

A. Honey mixture
1/2 cup honey
1/2 cup water

B. Sugared ribbons of orange
1 orange
1 cup of water
2 teaspoons sugar

C. About 1 cup pistachio nuts, crumbled

Vegetable oil for deep frying (about 3 cups, Becel vegetable oil is the best for this style of fritter)




Directions

To make the fritters:

o Incorporate dry ingredients with wet ones and make a fine soft dough.

o On a floured board roll out the dough to about 1/8 inch thick.

o Using a glass or cookie cutter, with a sharp knife cut out rounds in three different sizes -- the largest about 6 inches wide, the middle one about 3 inches and the smallest about 1 inch wide (Or, 5 inches wide, 2 inches wide, the smallest about 3/4 inch wide).

o Pile the three different sized rounds on top of each other, and with the top part of a wooden spoon pinch the three layers of rounds together.

o Using a scissor make 5 diagonal cuts into the rounds (leaving the center untouched). Repeat the process until all the rolled out dough is used (Scraps can be reprocessed, rolled out and cut...).

o Heat up the vegetable oil (The oil should not boil, but reach a warm temperature, so as not to burn the delicate fritters).

o Deep fry each fritter separately (They're delicate). If the rounds separate, they can later be re-attached with honey.

o Place the fritters on paper towels to usurp excess oil.



To make the sugared ribbons of orange:

o Cut out very thin ribbons from the skin of the orange.

o Boil a cup of water and add 2 teaspoons of sugar.

o Add the thin ribbons of orange peel to the boiling sugared water and let them boil for a couple of minutes.

o Drain the water.

o Heat up another cup of water. Add the thin ribbons of orange peel and boil down until the water evaporates.



To make the honey mixture.

o Place 1/2 cup of water and 1/2 cup of honey in a pan.

o Boil the honey and water mixture until it has a caramel-like texture.



To decorate the fritters

o Drizzle the tops of the fritters with honey (If any of the rounds came apart re-attach with honey).

o Decorate with ribbons of sugared orange zest.


Notes

When Marisa Pastore was growing in Sorrento, Campania, in the late 1950s, her mother, Immacolatina Guida, made "rose d'oriente," for the Easter holidays. She only made them for this particular religious holiday. For other occasions (e.g. Carnival) her mother used the same dough to make "chiacchiere." Actually, some people in Campania referred to this style of fritter as "chiacchiere a forma di rose." Those cooks who were unable to make the complicated design required for this fritter opted to use the pinwheel form. Luckily, Marisa Pastore is a talented and skilled cook and so was able to make the "rose d'oriente" shown in this entry. The photo of her work was taken by her friend, Mary Melfi.

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