Ciambelle with White Wine and Anise
I had tried making ciambelle several years ago, and I was not happy with the results. So, it took a while for me to have the courage to try again. This time, I decided to try a recipe that was truly Italian, not one that had been remade for an American audience. But, I tried it using my measuring cups and spoons so that it was adapted for an American kitchen. This recipe, like many Italian recipes talked in terms of 1 bicchiere (glass) of oil or sugar. How big is a glass, I asked myself? Well, it seems that when an Italian recipe calls for a glass it is referring to 200 grams or milliliters. So after a lot of converting of metric to American measures and some changes to the recipe because I choose to use olive oil and not a seed oil, I had a starting point. I was not sure what to expect, but I was surprisingly pleased with the results. This is a great breakfast treat or try it with a glass of passito or vin santo after dinner.
Ingredients
4 cups of flour
1/2 cup plus 3 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil
1 cup of sugar
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons of dry white wine ( I used verdicchio which is my every day wine in Le Marche, however, gavi, or even an unoaked chardonnay if you can find it would be okay. Make sure the wine is one you would like to drink as it will flavor the cookie and a bad wine will make a bad cookie.)
1 teaspoon of anise seeds
2 teaspoons of baking powder
Equipment
Electric mixer - I used a kitchen aid with a balloon attachment
Oven preheated to 350 F or 180 C
Making the Ciambelle
Step 1: Mix together the flour, sugar and baking powder in a large mixing bowl.
Step 2: Slowly mix in the olive oil and wine. (I mixed them together in a measuring cup with and poured them in a slow stream into the flour mixture.)
Step 3: Break off pieces of the dough and work with your hands until the dough is workable and not too dry. If it is not worked enough, it will fall apart as you try to roll our the ropes in Step 4.
Step 4: Roll the piece of dough into 12 to 14 inch ropes that are about 1/2 inch in diameter.
Step 5: Cut the rope in half and with each half form a circle overlapping the ends of the rope slightly.
Step 6: Place the ciambelle on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper and sprinkle with sugar.
Step 6: Place the cookie sheet in the center of the oven and bake for approximately 15 to 20 minutes until the ciambelle are golden brown.
Step 7: Remove from the oven and cool on a rack.
Ingredients
4 cups of flour
1/2 cup plus 3 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil
1 cup of sugar
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons of dry white wine ( I used verdicchio which is my every day wine in Le Marche, however, gavi, or even an unoaked chardonnay if you can find it would be okay. Make sure the wine is one you would like to drink as it will flavor the cookie and a bad wine will make a bad cookie.)
1 teaspoon of anise seeds
2 teaspoons of baking powder
Equipment
Electric mixer - I used a kitchen aid with a balloon attachment
Oven preheated to 350 F or 180 C
Making the Ciambelle
Step 1: Mix together the flour, sugar and baking powder in a large mixing bowl.
Step 2: Slowly mix in the olive oil and wine. (I mixed them together in a measuring cup with and poured them in a slow stream into the flour mixture.)
Step 3: Break off pieces of the dough and work with your hands until the dough is workable and not too dry. If it is not worked enough, it will fall apart as you try to roll our the ropes in Step 4.
Step 4: Roll the piece of dough into 12 to 14 inch ropes that are about 1/2 inch in diameter.
Step 5: Cut the rope in half and with each half form a circle overlapping the ends of the rope slightly.
Step 6: Place the ciambelle on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper and sprinkle with sugar.
Step 6: Place the cookie sheet in the center of the oven and bake for approximately 15 to 20 minutes until the ciambelle are golden brown.
Step 7: Remove from the oven and cool on a rack.