The Story of the Zeppole

Zeppole, or Italian fried dough is delicious. It is also a family tradition for Mr. A couple of Christmas' ago, when I was pregnant with the Monkey, my father in law made a comment lamenting the fact that they did not get his mother's zeppole recipe from her before she passed on. It got my husband thinking, and one night he said, "Do you think we could find THE zeppole recipe and surprise my parents?" Of course I said yes, but having never tackled doughs and yeast and such I was a tad nervous. Plus I had no clue where to start. Each region of Italy had about 5 different ways to make it and we didn't know how she made it, or even if she made it from scratch. So we searched, no luck. The real problem was that no one really paid attention to the ingredients, so I would ask "does it have  [insert ingredient here]?" and my husband responded  "I don't think so."

This search went on until New Year's. I got the answer in my stocking. It was a cookbook that was written by the son of a Calabrian mother.

Yes, that Stanley Tucci wrote a cookbook with his mother and father. In it they had family recipes and stories. I was reading it one night when a recipe caught my eye. It was for zeppole and it DIDN'T include anchovies! I book marked it and finished the rest of the book. (Fantastic by the way, I highly recommend it.)

This weekend we were invited over for Sunday dinner. This was our chance to surprise them. But first we had to test them out. In the morning, I placed the potatoes in cold water and brought them to a boil. Once they were done, I took some of the hot water and let it cool for a moment. I mixed in the yeast until it was dissolved, and let it sit while peeled and mashed the potatoes until smooth. (This was easier the next day when I employed my food processor with the job. ) I mixed in a cup of flour and the yeast. Then I mixed in two more cups of flour and mixed in Kosher Salt. Then came the tough part.

The kneading. I kneaded that dough for a good 30 minutes, kneading in flour until the dough was dry. Kneading is the best arm muscle exercises ever. My arms were so sore after the first day. They are even worse today.

After the kneading I put it in a flour coated bowl and covered with a towel to let it rise. It sat for two hours, and then we got our fry on. Using corn oil, I poured an inch into a frying pan and then heated it to 330 degrees. I fried two at a time. "With a couple of tweaks we have the dough", my husband informed me with a smile.

The next day, I did the process again and we prepped the dough. Instead of a little kosher salt, I coated the top of the dough and mixed it in. It rose as we drove to my In-Laws.

At this point, I must admit I was petrified. I was taking a beloved family favorite and trying to recreate it. If this botched, I would feel horrible. Mr. was so excited.

I fried the first two and gave one to my husband and one to his father. I went back to frying and my father in law just came out to the kitchen. "I haven't had Zeppole this good since my mother made them" and proceed to eat three of them. I explained how I figured it out, and we chatted about the cookbook.

He thanked me and was excited, but I didn't notice how excited until we walked in the door after and the phone was ringing. Since no one really calls us on the land line, I picked up getting ready to give a telemarketer a hard time. I was surprised to find my father in law on the other end. "I just wanted to call and say thank you for doing that. I never expected that in a million years." After I told him it was no big deal really, he told me it was. No one had ever attempted to try and make it, and making it from scratch meant so much to him. We talked for a moment, and then we hung up as Monkey had to go to bed. Mr. gave me a hug. "You did it. Thank you."

So now my niece, nephew, and my children will have the zeppole their parents had as kids. I intend on showing Monkey when he is old enough and he can carry on the tradition as he carries on the family name.

It is refreshing to me how great it is that we learn about our ancestors through food. Food is a universal language. It is comforting, daring, filled with love, made with laughter surrounded by family. We cook in times of joy, grief or even just as a just because moment. We make memories with food.

I will leave you with a word of wisdom from my grandmother, told to me in the kitchen of her house in 2002.  "The kitchen is the heart of the home. It beats always."


Zeppole Recipe:

Makes enough for 10 people (or 5 people, because it will get eaten)

Ingredients:

4 medium sized all purpose potatoes
4 cups of flour
1 cup warm water
1 packet of dry yeast
kosher salt
Corn oil for Frying

1) In a pot of cold water, bring the potatoes to a boil and let them cook for 15 minutes or so, until they are fork tender.

2) In a cup of warm water, mix in yeast until it dissolves.

3) Peel the potatoes and place them in a food processor, pulse until smooth. 

4) Mix in one cup flour and the yeast.

5) Mix 2 more cups of the flour.

6) Knead dough until smooth and incorporate flour until it is dry in the center.

5) Place in a flour coated bowl, cover with cloth and leave in a warm dry place for 2 hours.

6) In a skillet, pour the corn oil so that it is 1 inch deep and heat it up to 325 degrees.

7) Fry 2 (2 tablespoons worth of the dough for each with a hole in the middle) at a time, 3-5 minutes on each side until golden and puffy like a donut.

8) Place on a baking sheet covered with paper towels. Serve while hot or at room temperature. Better just out of the fryer, trust me.

Alternate versions~

As I learned you could make these zeppole into sandwiches. Just cut in half and put some cheese, prosciutto, salami, etc. in the middle.

Also you can include anchovies... if you like that sort of thing.

Or, you can place in a bag with powdered sugar and shake. Lots of fun for the kids.