For taralli dough
2 kilos (about 4 pounds) flour
6 eggs
1 tablespoon Magic baking powder
1 shot (1 1/2 ounces) of vegetable oil
1 tablespoon of fennel seeds
1/2 shot of Grappa and water
a little salt

For boiling taralli
A large tall pot of water
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ORIGINAL ITALIAN TEXT
2 kg. farina
un po di sale
6 uova
1 b olio
1 c. Magich
Finocchio
1/2 bicchiernino grappa e acqua
Lavora tanto la pasta; fare i taralli per dare un bollo, poi nel forno per 10 a 15 minuti. F 350.

Combine taralli dough ingredients and work into a malleable dough (kneading for at least 20 minutes).

Shape dough into a long, thin cylinder. Cut a few pieces of dough at a time (The pieces will dry out if too many are made at one time).

Roll out the pieces into thin small-sized taralli logs.

Press ends together to form a circle.

Bring a large pot of water to boil.

Add a few taralli at a time to boiling water.

When the taralli rise to the top, remove with a slotted spoon.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Bake in preheated oven until taralli are golden brown -- about 10 to 15 minutes.

Mrs. Anna-Maria Benvenuto has collected hundreds of recipes from relatives, friends and neighbors over the years. She recorded the recipes in Italian in numerous notebooks, often naming the recipe after the person who gave it to her (The one in this entry was provided to her by her friend, Lucia). Being an avid baker Mrs. Benvenuto tried out many of the recipes herself. However, because of her talent and expertise, she did not feel the need to write detailed instructions as she knew how to make the recipes without them. However, when asked by this website's archivist (Mary Melfi) for details, she quickly volunteered the information. Nonetheless, as with most first generation Italian-Canadian handwritten recipes, it is understood that whoever attempts to duplicate them should have some knowledge of what they are doing (Easier said than done).... While Mrs. Benvenuto was born in the Veneto region (in 1938) and has a natural fondness for recipes that come from this area, she found that as soon as she immigrated to Montreal, Quebec in 1952 she developed an instant appreciation for all foods from her homeland.... Photo and English translation of original Italian text: Mary Melfi.

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