Zeppole/sfinge

Hi Everyone!  I was on my way to my favorite cafe in Little Italy last week when I was taken by surprise by the Feast San Gennaro, the patron saint of Naples.  Walking by the stalls of frying sausages and peppers really made me wish I still ate red meat.  There were booths with traditional nougat candy, platters of sliced tomatoes with garlic, broccoli rabe and what I consider the ultimate feast food, zeppole.  The first time I ate zeppole I was at a small Italian feast in my neighborhood in the Bronx.  I was about 5 0r 6 years old.  My family called this type of zeppole, sfinge, from the Sicilian dialect which has some roots in Arabic.   I was fascinated by the huge kettle of boiling oil into which the cook was placing pieces of  raw pizza dough.  The dough was turned in the oil until golden on all sides then removed and put into a brown paper bag and sprinkled heavily with powdered sugar.  When my mother handed me one, I could tell it was going to be a treat but, as I bit into it, I fell in love!  It was pure heaven!  Oh, the wonder of fried dough!  Here's how to make your own sfinge, just like at a festa!

Zeppole/sfinge

Heat up some peanut or canola oil in a pot until boiling.  Buy or make enough pizza dough for one large pizza.  Don't try to make the dough wholesome or whole wheat, this is junk food here.

Pull off small pieces of dough and brown on all sides.  The dough should puff up and cook quickly.  Remove cooked dough and put out onto platters with paper towels on them to absorb the oil, and sprinkle liberally with powdered sugar.  Mmmmmm, a great treat!

I will get back with more garden fresh recipes as the picture implies, but I couldn't resist the delicious memory.  Enjoy!