In Calabrian Christmas desserts the protagonists are them: raisins, figs, dried fruit, citrus fruits, cooked wine and much more honey. These are some of the main ingredients with which the Christmas sweets from Calabria. Like any self-respecting typical dish, even in this case the recipes vary slightly from country to country and even from family to family. But not the tradition: that always remains the same. And so on the holiday tables of Christmas in Calabria cannot be missing mostacciolii petrals or the pitta ‘nclosed or pitta ‘mpigliatato name just a few.

Calabrian Christmas sweets

The mostaccioli

From weddings to baptisms up to Christmasi mostaccioli in Calabria they have always been synonymous with celebration. Made with simple ingredients, they are famous for their hard consistency and why they keep for a long time.

Ingredients

• 500 g of Flour 00
• 500 g of wildflower honey
• 10 g of yeast powder for sweets
• 3 yolks of egg

Method

1. Once the flour has been sifted into a bowl, add the yeasti yolks and a part of honey. At this point mix the ingredients, add the remaining part of honey and mix everything together.
2. Transfer the mass on a pastry boarddivide it into equal parts of approximately 100 grams each and shape into a loaf or according to the preferred form.
3. Arrange the mostaccioli on a baking tray covered with baking paper and bake at 180° for 35-40 minutes. Once baked, brush them still warm with honey and decorate them with gods colored sweets.

The petrals

TO Reggio Calabria they really can’t be missed at Christmas: they are the petralssmall shortcrust pastry crescents with a dessert dried fruit based filling.

Ingredients

For the dough

• 500 g of Flour
• 3 egg
• 200 g of sugar
• 100 g of butter
• half a sachet of yeast
• half a sachet of vanilla
• grated zest of a lemon.

For the filling (which should be prepared two days in advance)

• 250 g of dried figs
• 140 g of almonds
• 100 g of nuts
• 100 g of raisins
• cinnamon
• the peel of one orange and of a mandarin
• coffee
• cooked wine
• 2 tablespoons of bitter cocoa

For the decoration: a egg And sugars colourful.

Method

1. On a pastry board, make a well with the flour sifted with the yeast. Place the eggs in the center, start mixing and gradually add the sugar, vanilla and grated lemon zest.
2. Mix everything together to form a homogeneous mixturewrap it in cling film and let it rest in the fridge for half an hour.
3. In the meantime, chop the figsput them in a bowl, pour a cup of sweetened coffeeThe wine cooked and let them soften.
4. Also chop the walnuts, almonds, orange and mandarin peel. Add the raisins, a pinch of cinnamon and the bitter cocoa to this mixture. Mix and leave to rest in the refrigerator.
5. On a pastry board, roll out one thin sheet of shortcrust pastry from which to derive gods 10 centimeter discs in diameter. Place a spoonful of filling on half of each and close the other half. When all the crescents are ready, bake at 180° for approximately 10 minutes. Once baked, brush the surface with beaten egg and decorate with colored sugar balls.

Pitta ‘impigliata o ‘nchiusa

Another typical Calabrian dessert that is prepared in Christmas it’s at Easter and the pitta ‘mpigliataoriginally from San Giovanni in Fiore and very widespread throughout the province of Cosenza. In that of Catanzaro it is known, instead, by the name of pitta ‘nclosed. Even in this case it is one puff pastry filled with a filling of dried fruit and honey.

Ingredients

For pasta

• 500 g of Flour 00,
• 2 egg
• 100ml of extra virgin olive oil
• 100ml of wine Sweet
• 100 ml of freshly squeezed juice orange Sweet
• 2 tablespoons of sugar
• a small glass of Vermouth
• cinnamon
• the peel of aorange
• a sachet of yeast in powder
• a pinch of salt.

For the stuffing

• 250 g of honey
• 200 g of kernels nuts
• 200 g of sultanas
• 60 g of pine nuts
• a pinch of nails of carnation in powder
• one of cinnamon
• the grated zest of aorange
• one of lemon
• a small glass of Vermouth