Ingredients
about 1 kilo flour, possibly more
1 litre white wine
1 1/2 cups water
8 ounces olive oil
8 ounces vegetable oil
2 teaspoons salt
4 tablespoons sugar
4 teaspoons baking powder
Fennel seeds, to one's taste
Black pepper, to one's taste
Directions
o Preheat oven to 325 F degrees.
o Mix flour, sugar and baking powder.
o Mix wine, oils and water.
o On a floured wooden board make a mound with the flour mixture. Gradually add the wet ingredients to dry one, working into a smooth and malleable dough (Should be softer than a bread dough). Add more flour if the dough is too soft or sticky.
o Knead for about 15 minutes (preferably by hand).
o Shape the dough into a cylinder. Cut a piece of dough and using the palms of your hands, stretch it out and work into a taralli stick (The length and thickness will depend on personal preference but one that is about 9 inches long and 1/2 inch thick is the easiest to bake).
o Form a circle with the dough and pinch the ends together. Other shapes can be done with this dough, including braided taralli, but the round-shaped ones are the most popular.
o Place the taralli on a baking sheet that has been lined with parchment paper.
o Bake in a 325 F degree oven until the taralli are golden brown -- about 20 minutes.
Notes
Even though this taralli recipe includes a bit of sugar, it is not a sufficient amount for these taralli to be classified as "taralli dolci" according to Mrs. Anna Miccoli. She notes that when she was growing up in Italy her mother pre-boiled the taralli prior to baking them; she also used live yeast instead of baking powder. When she immigrated to Canada Mrs. Anna Miccoli first did the taralli using the traditional method, but later, she experimented with the recipe, and soon found that using baking powder rather than yeast did not take away from the good taste of the taralli. Nor was it necessary to pre-boil them. However, she finds that taralli come best when the kneading is done by hand, rather than with a machine. She finds that store-bought taralli are far too hard; she prefers home-made taralli because they are a touch crispy, but they are not jawbreakers.... Photo: Mary Melfi. |
