In my Italian-American family, holiday baking centers around traditional Abruzzo favorites. Rarely someone squeeze in a totally new recipe unearthed via a newspaper clipping but not me. For myself I like to focus the little time I have for baking on the tried and true. And easy to make I might add. My Dad who had a great deal more patience than I would slog through preparing Cajinettes or Giammelli which while delicious were very time consuming to make. Since he passed away I haven’t had the nerve to try making either of these, but pizzelles, which were my Grandmother Amalia and Aunt Josephine’s specialties, are right in my wheelhouse these days.
In recent years I’ve radically pared down the holiday baking to just these treats from the wide range I’ve made in the past. No time and no one to eat them. Pizzelles on the other hand go great with breakfast coffee or can make up a delicious after dinner snack. The waffle-like treats are slightly sweet and, thanks to the anise seeds we use in the dough, have a hint of licorice flavor.
Grandma and Aunt Jo made their pizzelles with an “iron” on top of a stovetop gas flame. This was the tradition that Grandma brought with her when she immigrated to the US from Giulianova, Abruzzo, Italy in the nineteen-teens and I’m grateful to be the recipient of her recipe. Someone in the family must have that iron but it’s not me and frankly, I love the electric pizzella maker that my Dad gave me as a present years ago so I could continue the pizzella-making tradition.
Pizzelles originated in the Abruzzo region I learned recently, and the back-story is fascinating. Although I had searched for info about their history for some time, it was only recently that my cousin in Italy informed me about that among other tidbits. She said that they are called Ferratelle there and that they are named for the device upon which they are made, “Lu ferre” which is local dialect for the iron. She also told me that the iron was traditionally given to new brides by wealthy Abruzzese in the the 18th century as a wedding gift with the new bride’s initials engraved on it so that the resulting pizzelles had them on it. Cool story….
So this year I’m not only sharing these delicacies with neighbors and friends but also this wonderful story. I urge readers to try making them. If you don’t own a pizzella iron, all is not lost. You could use a waffle maker just making sure to keep the dough to a thin layer. Enjoy!
Pizzelles
Ingredients:
6 eggs
4 cups flour (approx.)
1 1/3 cup sugar
1 cup melted butter
4 tsp baking powder
2 tbs anise seeds
Juice of 1 orange
1 tbs lemon juice
Preparation:
Beat eggs in a medium bowl. Add sugar gradually & beat until smooth. Add cooled butter, anise. Add flour, baking powder gradually to beaten egg mixture & then fruit juices. Dough will be sticky. Drop by spoonful onto a heated pizzelle iron & close lid. Cook till lightly browned and remove from iron to a dry towel to cool.
