2 cups flour
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup sweet red wine
1/2 cup olive oil
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon baking powder.

Yield: about 14 ciambelline.

Mix oil and wine together.

In a separate bowl, sift flour, sugar, baking powder and salt together.

Blend wet ingredients with dry ones until a malleable dough is formed (If the dough is too sticky add a touch more flour; if it is too hard, add a touch more wine).

Knead for about 6 minutes.

Form the dough into a long thick cylinder.

Wrap with plastic wrap.

Allow the dough to rest for an 1 hour.

Preheat oven to 325 F. degrees.

Line baking sheets with parchment paper.

Cut a piece of dough, and form into a tarallini-style log -- about 4 inches long, 1/2 inch wide.

Shape the log into a circle, pinching the ends together.

Place the ciambelline on the baking sheet lined with parchment paper (or one well-greased with lard or butter).

Continue processing the dough until it is used up.

Bake until golden -- about 20 to 25 minutes.

Remove and cool.

The recipe in this entry was adapted from "Southern Italian Cooking" by Valentina Harris (London: Pavilion Books, 1993). The book can be borrowed for free at the on-line public library, www.openlibrary.org....... It seems that in some parts of Italy, tarallini are also known as "ciambelline." The word, "ciambella" simply means something that is doughnut shaped (round with a hole in the center); "ciambelline" means something doughnut shaped that is very small. Cakes, holiday breads and pizzelle cookies are sometimes called "ciambella" if they come in the doughnut shape. In most parts of Molise tarallini are generally made with white wine (If and when wine is used) but it seems that in Abruzzo as well as in Lazio and Tuscany red wine is also considered a good alternative. Personal comments and photo: Mary Melfi.

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