Best Christmas Honey Fritters Struffoli Recipes

STRUFFOLI | ITALIAN HONEY BALLS RECIPE

Steps:

• Melt the butter in a double boiler and let it cool. In a large bowl, mix together the flour with the baking powder and a pinch of salt.
• Add sugar, melted butter, the liquor, eggs and the orange zest. Mix the ingredients with the help of a wooden spoon.
• Continue to knead with your hands, until you get a homogeneous dough, free of lumps. Wrap the dough in cling film and let it rest at room temperature for 30 minutes.
• After the resting time, cut the dough into equal parts. With your flat hands, roll each piece on the work surface as if to make a cylinder about 1 cm (about 1/2 inch) thick.
• Slice the roll of dough with the help of a small knife into many pieces of 1 cm (1/2 inch) in size. You can leave your Sruffoli in small pieces or give them the shape of balls by rolling them between the palms of your hands.
• Fry Struffoli few at a time turning them a couple of times. In 30-40 seconds they will be ready. Drain them with a skimmer and place on a serving dish, covered with absorbent kitchen paper.
• In a saucepan that can contain all the struffoli, pour almost all the honey and some rainbow sprinkles. Heat over very low heat, stirring with a wooden spoon. This step is to make the honey more liquid and more malleable.
• Turn off the heat and add the struffoli. Add one more tablespoon of sprinkles and mix all together. When all the Struffoli are wrapped in honey and sprinkles, immediately transfer them, still hot, to a serving dish.
• Give them the shape you prefer, for example the classic pyramid or the classic donut shape that resembles a Christmas wreath!

STRUFFOLI (FRIED DOUGH WITH HONEY AND ALMONDS)

Steps:

• Combine flour, 3/4 cup sugar, salt, and baking powder in a large bowl. Mix together butter, orange-blossom water, vanilla and anise extracts, and egg in another bowl. Pour into flour mixture. Mix well, adding ice water, 1 tablespoon at a time, until dough is stiff but not crumbly.
• Roll out dough to 3/8-inch thickness on a lightly floured cutting board. Cut dough into 3/8-inch-wide strips, then cut crosswise into 3/8-inch squares. Roll each piece into a ball, transferring to a lightly floured surface as you work.
• Heat 2 inches oil in a medium heavy saucepan until a deep-fry thermometer registers 375 degrees. Working in batches, fry dough, stirring, until golden. Remove fried dough from oil using a wire-mesh skimmer, and transfer to paper towels to drain.
• Heat honey, remaining 3 tablespoons sugar, and 3 tablespoons water in a small saucepan until sugar dissolves. Working in batches, dip struffoli in honey sauce until well coated, and transfer to a sieve set over a bowl to drain; reserve honey sauce. Mound struffoli on a platter, pour remaining and reserved honey sauce over top, and sprinkle with almonds and nonpareils.

SPIRAL FRITTERS WITH HONEY

Steps:

• Place flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt in a large bowl; whisk to combine. Make a well in center, and add eggs, ouzo, olive oil, orange juice, and 2 tablespoons honey. Lightly mix with a fork until dough is smooth and no longer sticky. (Add more flour if needed.)
• Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Knead until dough is smooth, 10 to 15 minutes. (Alternatively, fit a mixer with a dough hook, and knead 8 to 10 minutes.) Cover dough with plastic, and let stand 30 to 60 minutes.
• Divide dough into 8 pieces. Using a rolling pin, flatten 1 piece, rolling from the center outward, easing the pressure when the pin is close to the edge, until slightly thinner than the widest setting on a pasta machine. Dust lightly with flour, then feed through a pasta machine on the widest setting (#1), supporting both ends of the sheet with your palms to keep it flat; repeat twice. Turn dial to next narrower setting. Pass dough through twice. Continue to roll dough twice through each ever-finer setting, until thin (#5). Repeat with rest of pieces.
• With a fluted pastry cutting wheel, cut each sheet of dough into strips that are 20 inches long and 1 inch wide.
• Heat vegetable oil in a medium saucepan until it registers 350 degrees. Wrap end of 1 strip of dough around index and middle fingers, pinching end to create a loop of dough with a long tail. Wrap tail around 3 fingers, then around 4 fingers. Pinch end against spiral. Gently drop spiral into hot oil, and cook, turning once, until golden brown and puffed, about 2 minutes. Transfer to paper towels to drain. Repeat.
• Transfer fritters to a serving dish, and pour remaining 6 cups honey generously over top. Sprinkle with cinnamon and walnuts. Serve warm or at room temperature.