Recipes>Dessert Recipes

Fritole (Venetian Doughnuts)

by Russell Norman from Venice: Four Seasons of Home Cooking

Makes 20 or so

A decadent recipe for traditional fritole, a typical Venetian doughnut, from ‘Venice: Four Seasons of Home Cooking’ by Russell Norman. This sweet delicacy is irresistible with a morning coffee or as an afternoon treat.

Discover more delicious Dessert recipes

Delicious desserts for every flavour profile

From the book

Venice

Russell Norman

Venice: Four Seasons of Home Cooking

Authentic Venetian dishes across all four seasons

Delicious pasta and risotto recipes

Stunning food and travel photography

Buy From

Introduction

After the celebrations of Christmas and the New Year, Venice can feel a little drab and empty. Many of the good restaurants close, and a lot of residents spend time with their extended families on the mainland. The days are cold and short and January in particular feels like a month that is neither here nor there. Thank god, then, for doughnuts.

In the run-up to carnevale (always on, before and beyond Shrove Tuesday) the caffès, bakeries and cake shops start to make fritole, typically Venetian street doughnuts, a tradition that goes back centuries. They are uneven and clumsy, packed with fruit and covered with sugar, but incredibly moreish and essential with my morning coffee. It’s the best way I know to get through the winter blues.

Tags

Ingredients

Method

Dissolve a teaspoon of sugar in a cup of warm water and stir in the dried yeast. Place the flour in a very large mixing bowl and, using a wooden spoon, stir in the eggs, 75g of the sugar and the yeast water. Now, continuing to stir, add enough milk a little at a time to create a soft and loose dough. Add the sultanas, the zest and a pinch of salt, mix thoroughly until the dough is pliable and springy, then cover with a damp cloth or cling film and leave in a warm place for 2 hours.

When the dough has risen, probably to double its original size, heat the vegetable oil to around 190˚C in a large saucepan. You can test this by dropping a small cube of white bread in the pan – it should turn golden brown in 20 seconds.

Scoop out a dessertspoonful of the dough at a time and drop into the hot oil. Make sure you don’t overload the pan. The doughnuts should start to turn golden after a couple of minutes.

Turn them over with a slotted spoon for another couple of minutes on the other side (5 to 6 minutes in total), then remove from the oil on to several sheets of kitchen paper. While they are still hot, sprinkle with the remaining caster sugar and serve immediately, or set aside in a warm place and serve at room temperature when you are ready.

Reviews

Have you tried this recipe? Let us know how it went by leaving a comment below.

Cancel reply

Your review

Name *

Our team will respond to any queries as soon as we can - this may take longer over weekends. You do not need to resubmit your comment.

Please note: Moderation is enabled and may delay your comment being posted. There is no need to resubmit your comment. By posting a comment you are agreeing to the website Terms of Use .

Be the first to leave a review

Ingredients

Method

More Recipes from Venice

View all

Grilled Radicchio

by Russell Norman from Venice

Swordfish Puttanesca

by Russell Norman from Venice

More Dessert Recipes

View all

Nadiya Hussain’s Chocolate Cheesecake

by Nadiya Hussain from Nadiya’s Quick Comforts

Nadiya Hussain’s Croissant Berry Pudding Slices

by Nadiya Hussain from Nadiya’s Quick Comforts

More Italian Recipes

View all

Mary Berry’s Burrata Caprese Sharing Platter

by Mary Berry from Mary 90: My Very Best Recipes

Mary Berry’s Arancini with Dolcelatte and Porcini Mushrooms

by Mary Berry from Mary 90: My Very Best Recipes

Get our latest recipes, features, book news and ebook deals straight to your inbox every week