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Holiday Breads
Zita Easter cakes
Zita Easter Cakes or Puppata Easter Cakes (Doll-shaped cakes or large-sized cookies, without yeast, with pasticcio dough)
Originated from: Casacalenda, Molise, Italy
Occasion: Easter
Contributed by: Mary Melfi (Zia Rosina's recipe)

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Ingredients

For Pasticcio Dough [Makes 3 large cookies]

4 large eggs
3/4 cup sugar
2 1/2 cups flour *
1/2 cup melted lard (e.g., Tenderflake)*
Juice of 1 small lemon
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 tablespoon finely grated lemon zest mixed with a bit of sugar

For Decoration

3 cooked hard-boiled small eggs in their shells
2 beaten egg yolks for brushing
Raisins, grated chocolate and/or other cake decorations

* Measurement is approximate



Directions

Mix ingredients and work into a cookie dough. If the dough is too soft add more flour, if it's too hard add more lard.

Wrap the dough in clear plastic and let it rest for an hour or so.

On a floured board, using a rolling pin, roll out the dough to about 1/4 to 1/2 inch thick. Note that if the dough is too thin it will burn and break easily. If it's too thick it might not cook right -- so the thickness of the cookie dough is very important.

Cut out a cookie in the shape of a doll (about 7 to 9 inches high). (If one can't get a commercial doll-shaped cookie cutter in this size, one can draw a doll on cardboard and then use it as a cookie cutter).

Place a hard-boiled egg on the doll's stomach. Extend her arms and let them wrap around the egg.

Make another doll or use the dough left to make cookies in other traditional shapes.

Brush the top of each cookie made with egg yolk (including the hard boiled egg).

Decorate the cookies.

Place the cookies on baking sheets that have been greased (or have silicon cookie sheets over them).

Bake in a 325 degree oven for 15 to 20 minutes or until it is golden (if it turns brown it will taste burnt).*

Serve at room temperature.



**For best results use aluminum cookie sheets that are sold in "Dollar Shops" [e.g. "Titan Foil"] and then place silicon cookie sheets [e.g. the thick red-colored ones sold at Canadian Tire] on top of them. These cheaper aluminum cookie sheets do not conduct heat as well as the more expensive cookie sheets available in specialty shops which surprisingly is a good thing. In aluminum cookware the bottoms of the cookies don't cook faster than the tops, resulting in more evenly-cooked cookies (No burnt cookie bottoms!).




Notes

According to both my aunt, Zia Rosina, these doll-shaped cakes (and/or cookies) were known by a number of different names (prior to World War II). Some called them "puppata" -- dialect for doll; others called them "zit'" -- dialect for bride; the occasional person called them "spouse." The doll-shaped cakes (and/or cookies) apparently, in the 1930s, were decorated with silver sprinkles; peppercorns were often used to make the eyes. In Casacalenda the doll-shaped sweets generally held the hard-boiled eggs in their arms. Prior to World War II these sweets were only made once a year, at Easter. They were given to young girls as gifts on Easter Sunday, while young boys were given "carosello" -- coiled braided logs decorated with multi-colored sprinkles. Even though these holiday treats were given as gifts on Easter Sunday, they were actually supposed to be eaten on Easter Monday when families went picnicking in the countryside -- known as "la Pasquetta." In many parts of Southern Italy, including Molise, these Easter treats came in other shapes besides dolls and braided logs. Some cooks shaped the dough to look like donkeys, others like baskets. Stars and crescent-shaped moons were also popular. Those cookies that looked like men were often called called "santi" -- saints. Note that some cooks made these Easter treats with pasticcio cookie dough (as was the one in the photo), other cooks used sweet taralli dough. Photo: Mary Melfi.

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