'True to the spirit of multi-culti Sicily, these are a French pastry with a Sicilian filling, an Arabic name, and a legacy tied to the Jews who once ran Sicily’s thriving sugar industry. Nowadays, they spring up in pastry shops all over Sicily for Saint Joseph’s Day, March 19, which is also, not coincidentally, Father’s Day. In honor of dads, these delicate fritters, plump with sweetened ricotta cream or pastry cream, begin to show up in all of Sicily’s pastry shops, often adorned with a cherry and a strip of candied orange peel. In Morocco, donuts resembling sfinci are commonly made for the Jewish holiday Hanukkah and are called sfinj. Sfinj came to Morocco with the Spanish Moors in probably the same way sfinci arrived in Sicily. These can be either baked or fried, depending on your pleasure. Both methods are presented here.'
- Victoria Granof from Sicily My Sweet: Love Notes to an Island, with Recipes for Cakes, Cookies, Puddings, and Preserves
Ingredients
Canola, sunflower, or other neutral oil (if frying)
1 recipe bigné dough
1 recipe crema di ricotta with
chocolate chips
Powdered sugar, for dusting
14 strips candied orange peel for garnish
14 glac., Luxardo, or Amarena cherries, for garnish
Bigné Ingredients
1 cup (120 g) bread flour
1 cup (240 ml) water or milk
1/2 cup (120 g) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
4 eggs
Make the Bigné
In a heavy-bottomed medium saucepan, combine the water or milk, butter, and salt and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. As soon as the mixture comes to a full rolling boil, remove the pan from the heat and add the flour all at once. With a wooden spoon, strength, and a sense of urgency, stir until the mixture comes away from the sides of the pan and forms a nice smooth mass. It won’t look likely at first, but stick with it. Let the dough sit, pan loosely draped with a cotton towel, for 10 minutes.
This next part is easiest done in a stand mixer with the paddle attachment on medium speed, but doing it by hand is good for your self-confidence. Break the eggs into a glass measuring cup and gently beat them with a fork to combine. Pour one-fourth of the eggs into the pan with the dough and have at it with your wooden spoon (do not be tempted to use a whisk), stirring and bashing the dough against the sides of the pan until the egg is absorbed. It will look curdled at first but will come together. Continue with the rest of the eggs, stirring and bashing all the while. (Or, as I said, you could follow the same procedure but let the stand mixer do the bashing.) Scrape the sides of the pan with a silicone spatula as you go until the eggs are incorperated.
The Fried Ones - Quelli Fritti
In a deep, heavy saucepan over medium heat, heat 4 inches (10 cm) of oil to 325˚F (160˚C). In the absence of a deep-fry thermometer, test the oil by inserting the handle of a wooden spoon into it. If bubbles quickly form against the handle, the oil is ready for frying. Cut parchment paper into fourteen 3-inch (7.5 cm) squares. Fit a pastry bag with a 1-inch (2.5 cm) round tip and fill with the bigné dough. Pipe 2-inch (5 cm) mounds of dough onto each square and turn the square upside down into the oil.
As the bigné puffs and cooks, you can pull the paper off with tongs and discard it. Fry sfinci until golden brown on one side, then turn over and fry on the other side, about 4 minutes total. Remove them from the oil with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towels or on a rack set over a baking sheet; allow to cool completely.
When cooled, split the tops of the sfinci in half with a sharp knife, leaving the bottoms intact. Pull the tops apart and fill generously with the ricotta cream, leaving the cream exposed in the center. Dust with powdered sugar and decorate the cream with a strip of orange peel and a cherry.
The Baked Ones - Quelli Al Forno
Preheat the oven to 400˚F (200˚C). Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
Fit a pastry bag with a 1-inch (2.5 cm) round or star tip and fill with the bigné dough. Pipe 2-inch (5 cm) mounds of dough onto the baking sheets, leaving three finger-widths between each one and the edges of the pan. Flick a bit of water from your fingertips once or twice over the mounds and put the baking sheets in the oven. Do not open the oven while the puffs are baking. Bake for 40 minutes, then lower the oven to 325˚F (160˚C) for another 15 minutes. Turn off the oven but leave the sfinci in for a final 15 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow the sfinci to cool completely before filling.
When cooled, split the tops of the sfinci in half with a sharp knife, leaving the bottoms intact. Pull the tops apart and fill generously with the ricotta cream, leaving the cream exposed in the center. Dust with powdered sugar and decorate the cream with a strip of orange peel and a cherry.