Carnival Doughnuts - Frittelle

Makes about 12 or so

50 grams sultanas

enough rum to cover the sultanas
14 grams yeast & some tepid water

200 grams plain flour

1 egg

50 grams caster sugar

a little milk- about 50mls more or less

pinch of salt

vegetable oil for deep frying – I use peanut oil

caster sugar for rolling - I use vanilla flavoured icing sugar 

Firstly, place the sultanas into a small bowl, covering them with rum. They should soak for about half an hour, until a little plump.

Then, in another bowl, add the dry yeast and 150ml of tepid water. I also add half a teaspoon of sugar. I then cover with some plastic wrap and I let it stand for about 5 – 10 minutes. It will foam up.

In a large mixing bowl, place the flour, sugar, egg and a little milk.

Stir with a whisker. Then I add, the frothy yeast liquid, a pinch of salt and the sultanas and all the rum. Stir the mixture, until you get a smooth, thick batter. At this stage, if the batter is too thick, add more milk

Cover the mixing bowl with a teacloth, and let it rise for a couple of hours at room temperature. As it is pretty chilly in Venice during carnival, I normally place the bowl next to a radiator.

After about 2 hours, the batter will have risen, start heating the oil for frying, I like to use a litre of oil and I make sure that the pot is nice and deep, as the "frittelle" need to float and not touch the bottom of the pot. Now, if you want to be super precise, use a thermometer and let the oil reach 190°c

Once the oil is at the right temperature,  I use one of my small measuring cups (my 1/4 cup size) and a tablespoon, to dollop the batter into the hot oil. I normally fry 4 at a time. The "frittelle" take about 2-3 minutes of each side, be careful they do not burn. 

 

Drain well on paper towels

Once they are all cooked, traditionally they should be rolled in normal white caster sugar, however, I like to dust them with loads of vanilla flavoured icing sugar

Now, quickly EAT as many as you can, before everyone else gets to them!!!!