Across all of Italy, almost everyone has either heard of or tried Sfingi. Sfingi in Italy is made with the same ingredients for the most part. But from family to family, they all put their twist on it; some add ricotta, fruits, sweets, raisins, and many other ingredients. Sfingi is commonly known for being donut-shaped, but some families in Italy, much like mine, form the dough into different shapes.
The dish is shared mainly at parties and most commonly served on March 19, St. Joseph’s Day. The treat’s history is after St. Joseph who fled to Egypt with Mary and Jesus, and he started to sell pancakes to provide for his family; in doing so, many types of desserts are tied to his name. My Nonna uses a recipe from Sicilian Food Tours because it most resembles how she made it back in Cinisi, Sicily.
Ingredients:
- ½ kilo of 00 flour
- 20 g of fresh yeast
- 200 ml of room temp water
- 1 pinch of salt( ⅓ teaspoon)
- 150 g of sultanas( these are not needed they are raisins if you’d prefer not to, the dish would still be delicious without them)
- Canola or olive oil for deep frying
- Sugar and cinnamon to roll the sfingi in after deep frying there is no set amount but it depends on If you like a strong amount of cinnamon
Directions:
- Place flour in a bowl preferably a large bowl
- Add a pinch of salt
- In a cup dissolve the yeast in 200 ml of room temp water
- Add the cup into the bowl, this is the part to add your additional ingredients
- Add sultanas, if not then you can skip this step
- Now mix the dough with your hands, it’s an up and down motion and mix well for 5 minutes, mix until elasticity and soft
- When finished let the dough sit for an hour in a warm kitchen or wait until the dough has risen.
- Once the dough has risen to twice its size break the dough gently and gently fold the dough
- While heating up the oil make sure it’s 5 fingers deep when measuring horizontally parallel with the bottom of the pan, the idea is for the sfingi to rise to the top and cook all the way around.
- When the oil is hot, use a spoon and gently scrape some dough and place into the oil. Sfingi is most commonly known for being a donut ball shape, but in my family we twist it to look like a breast cancer symbol. Any way you shape the sfingi is a whole personal preference.
- When the sfingi is golden all the way around pull them out, you can use tongs or a spoon, place the sfingi on a paper towel, roll the sfingi in the sugar and cinnamon mix
- This recipe can make up to 20-30 Sfingi depending on the size
For anyone who loves to bake, cook, or experience the foods of other cultures Sfingi is the perfect dish to try. It can be made to fit any person’s pickiness; it truly is a fan favorite in all of Sicily.
