Cantarelle, an ancient dessert characterized by poor and genuine ingredients and a simple recipe, are the Romagna version of pancakes
The scent of cantarelle hot, freshly made and covered with a light sprinkling of sugar, they represent a pleasant childhood memory for many people from Emilia. For those who do not know the Romagna cantarelle, sweet of the tradition of old Romagna made with flour, water and salt, they are the regional version of the most popular and international pancakes.
How to prepare the cantarelle according to the Romagna tradition
Cantarelle, like any other poor recipe of peasant origin, have always been prepared with simple ingredients, inexpensive and always present in our pantries. To cook them, according to the original recipe, pour some flour in a bowl, add a pinch of salt and gradually pour somecold water (slightly more than the weight of the flour), mixing with a whisk; once the flour came directly from the mill, nowadays 00 flour can be used or, as we will see later, you can opt for a mix of different flours. Unlike pancakes, therefore, the cantarelle contain neither yeast nor eggs.
Once a smooth, soft and rather dense batter is obtained, it is poured with a ladle on a hot plate (today a non-stick pan is also fine), so as to form discs of about 10 centimeters in diameter. The cooking process is similar to that of crêpes, and requires that the pancake is cooked well on both sides. Meanwhile, pour it into a large plate or a large bowl drizzle of extra virgin olive oil and a little granulated sugar, on which a first layer of cantarelle will be placed. Then continue with the cooking, going from time to time to add several layers of seasoning between the pancakes. What we got was a sweet poor, but tasty, genuine and fragrant, perfect for a quick and abundant snack.
The many modern variations of this sweet from Romagna
There is no Italian dish of peasant origin that has not undergone changes, also based on the ingredients available from time to time, giving rise to personalized recipes, kept and handed down from family to family. For example, many people from Romagna love to add a pinch of bicarbonate or replace the milk, so as to obtain even softer pancakes. The introduction of the yellow corn flour, which is often mixed with the white one. What over time deviates more and more from the traditional recipe is above all the final filling; in modern times, in fact, many replace icing sugar with granulated sugar or butter with extra virgin olive oil. Then there are those who, like pancakes, like to pour honey or maple syrup on hot cantarelle, or serve with homemade jams and preserves such as, for example, fig or berry jam. To give this dessert an original touch but still faithful to the Emilian culinary tradition, it can be garnished with a few teaspoons of savor, or a sort of jam of Modena origin made with grape must and with the addition of autumn fruit.
In short, this sweet from Emilia is really quick and easy to cook and can be adapted to your tastes; all that remains is to choose whether to opt for the peasant recipe or to try some imaginative experiment.
Photos from Instagram @ nadina.serravezza, Valverde, Emilia-Romagna, Italy (https://www.instagram.com/p/B47cd8aFfNU/).
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