Chiacchiere (Italian carnival pastries)

Chiacchiere are wonderfully crisp, gently sweet fried pastries, traditionally enjoyed during carnival in Italy. They only need a short list of ingredients and a quick cook for flaky, crunchy deliciousness!

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We didn't really have carnival traditions where I grew up, other than enjoying Shrove Tuesday pancakes. However I was lucky enough to enjoy a few different celebrations in other places when school holidays lined up, like colorful, vibrant parades in Tenerife.

As an adult, I've managed to enjoy a few more and have always liked how it's a celebration that has some aspects that are very localized and others that are enjoyed more widely. And this goes for carnival foods as much as the celebrations themselves. For example, schiacciata alla fiorentina is a local Florentine cake, but these chiacchiere are enjoyed more widely.

And it's easy to see why - they're simple and addictively good.

A carnival tradition

Chiacchiere (which means to chatter) are a popular treat during carnevale, the celebration in the run up to Lent in Italy (aka Mardi Gras). As in some other places, it's not just a one day celebration but rather a longer period of celebration and indulging in treats before the more restrained Lenten period. These pastries are particularly popular at some of the street markets that accompany the festivities.

Chiacchiere is actually just the name in some areas - they also go by other names like frappe in Rome, bugie in Genoa and Piedmont, cenci in Tuscany, crostoli in the North-East, including Venice and others.

They are also broadly the same as fried pastries enjoyed in other countries around Europe as well, like fatigmann in Norway and pestiños in Spain. While they can vary a little in shape and flavorings, the broad idea of slightly sweet fried dough is the same.

Part of this is that they likely have shared origins. These pastries are said to date all the way back to Roman times. Though originally, they were fried in lard rather than oil.

Ingredients in chiacchiere

These little pastries have only a short list of ingredients:

• Flour - you'd use tipo 00 flour in Italy, but all purpose/plain flour elsewhere is fine.
• Egg - this helps hold the dough together and give it some elasticity, which helps you to be able to roll it really thin without it cracking.
• Marsala, grappa, rum, vin santo or brandy - this adds a little flavor but the main reason for adding is it helps the pastries become crisper.
• Sugar - to add a touch of sweetness, though these are not definitely just gently sweet.
• Butter - just a little adds to the flavor. It's in most modern recipes though not all.
• Lemon zest and vanilla extract - these, too, is not in all recipes and are just to add flavor. If you prefer, you can skip them or add orange zest instead of lemon.

While I haven't here, you can also add a pinch of baking soda. This helps the dough puff up a little more and create bubbles inside the dough. It's up to you if you prefer to have this happen or not. They'll be tasty and crisp either way.

Tips for making these fried pastries

Making these pastries is in many ways similar to making pasta, just you fry the end result. You just have a few steps - mix the dough, knead, let it rest then roll it thin and cut into pieces. But a few tips to help them work well:

• Make sure you let the dough rest - this is important as it allows the gluten to relax. This makes it more pliable and lets you roll it without the dough bouncing back too much. 
• Wrap the dough in plastic wrap/cling film whenever you aren't working with it. This helps avoid the dough drying out. Only work with part of the dough at a time so it's more manageable and doesn't get too dry.
• Use a pasta machine to roll really thin - while you absolutely can roll this by hand, a pasta machine/maker helps get it both even and thin with a little less effort. 
• Cut into strips with a pastry wheel or ravioli cutter to get nicely fluted edges.

You can cut these in a few ways - the more traditional is in rectangles with a split in the middle, as here, but you can cut two slits if you prefer. You can also fold one end through the middle to get two loops on the sides. Really, as you prefer.

The main thing is to have the pieces nice and thin so they crisp up. As you are rolling the dough, use a little extra flour as needed to help avoid the dough sticking.

Cooking chiacchiere

Cut all the pieces before cooking as that part goes quickly. Have everything ready so you can focus on cooking ideally without them getting too brown.

• Have paper towel ready to drain excess oil off the cooked pastries. Placing some on a baking sheet helps give space to spread them out.
• Use a neutral oil for frying, such as vegetable oil, canola oil or avocado oil. I don't recommend olive oil as it both has more flavor and more importantly, a lower smoke point.
• Make sure the oil is hot for frying. Test the oil with one piece of pastry - you should get plenty of bubbles around the pastry. 
• Only cook a few at a time. These cook quickly, so you don't want to have too many to work with at a time. Once starting to brown, flip them over to cook the other side then remove once golden. If needed, adjust the heat if they're cooking too fast or slowly.

This might seem like a lot of tips, but they're really easier than this sounds! And if a couple get a little too brown, don't worry - the recipe makes lots so a few less than perfect isn't the end of the world.

You are best to wait a few minutes after making these to make sure the oil drains off before you dust them with powdered sugar. You don't want the sugar to just get absorbed by the oil.

However once they are dry, the dusting of sugar gives a lovely finish. Well, until it maybe ends up a little on your face as you eat. You can store any leftovers for a couple days at room temperature, if they last that long.

Chiacchiere are a wonderful seasonal treat, that are addictively good in their simplicity. They're super crisp, delicate and light, with a lovely lightly sweet aromatic flavor. You'll be glad you made plenty, as it's impossible to stop at one. They're sure to be a favorite, just as they are in Italy.

Try these other carnival/mardi gras favorites:

• Creole jambalaya (delicious any time, a tasty mix of rice, sausage and more)
• Ravioli dolci (sweet ravioli, with a ricotta-based filling)
• British pancakes (the classic in the UK for Shrove Tuesday, a simple pancake topped with lemon and sugar)
• Plus get more Italian recipes in the archives.

See some of my favorite cooking tools and ingredients in the Caroline's Cooking Amazon store. 

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