There is no Christmas without Rococo. This traditional delight is inextricably linked to the Christmas holidays and is a must on the tables of all Neapolitan families. Rococos are gods donut-shaped biscuits made with flour, almonds, sugar and gun, or a mix of spices whose smell immediately brings back to the warmth of the holidays, to family dinners, to the house that smells like cinnamon and cloves. Roccocò, by tradition, are very hard and it is customary to nibble them slowly, perhaps soaking them in a sweet wine such as Vinsanto or Passito, but now you can also find them in the soft shapemuch more accessible to all. The secret is in the cooking, which will determine the hardness of Rococo. Together with struffoli and mustacciuoli, roccocò will really be that final touch to make your Christmas table perfect.

PREPARATION

1

Grind 100 g of almonds in a mixer until they are almost flour. Keep aside the other 30 g of almonds. Meanwhile, cut the citron and candied orange into small cubes.

2

In a bowl, pour the sifted flour, sugar, ground almonds, ammonia for sweets, chopped candied fruit, pisto and grated orange zest.

3

Add the water and mix first with a spatula, then by hand, until you obtain a homogeneous mixture.

4

Divide the dough into ten equal parts of about 80 g each. Form some sticks and roll them up, thus creating donuts.

5

Line a baking tray with baking paper and place the donuts about 2 cm apart. In a small bowl, beat the egg and then brush it on the surface of the donuts, then placing the remaining whole almonds on top.

6

Bake in a preheated static oven at 180° for 20 minutes. Take them out and let them cool completely.

storage

Rococò can be kept for a month, covered by a clean cloth in a cool, dry place, or in a tin box. It is not recommended to freeze them.

Advice and tips

This recipe calls for a cooking that will leave the roccocò soft. If, on the other hand, you want to obtain the classic hard rococo, to be nibbled slowly, bake at 180° for 20 minutes, then lower the temperature to 150° and let them cook another 15 minutes. Let them cool completely before consuming them.

The pistol it’s a spice mix used specifically for this type of preparation. It is normally found in chocolate, sweet and candied shops, or from pastry suppliers. If you can’t find it, just mix 12 g of cinnamon, 2 g of nutmeg, 2 g of powdered cloves, 2 g of powdered star anise, 2 g of pepper.

History

Roccocò have a very ancient history: they were born in 1320 in the Royal Convent of the Magdalene of Naples, where the nuns invented this sort of hard and spiced donut calling it “roccocò”, from the French “rocaille”, the name that indicated decorations similar to shells. Traditionally, roccocò are prepared on December 8 and eaten during all the Christmas holidays.