Fried friars

Sardinians or Tuscans? It doesn't matter, fried friars are a truly delicious Carnival dessert similar to donuts. Here is the recipe.

Close but separated by the sea are the two regions that compete for the paternity of fritti fritti, a typical carnival dessert but also easy to find at other times of the year. The regions we are talking about are Tuscany and Sardinia but, if it's any consolation, finding the original recipe is like finding a needle in a haystack.

Every family and shop has its own recipe for these fried donuts, known in Sardinian as parafrittus , but they are all delicious. Whether you prefer to call them Sardinian fried donuts or you prefer to consider them Tuscan, they are perfect for a snack for adults and children, not just at Carnival.

How to prepare the fried friars recipe

1. First prepare the yeast by combining 90 g of flour, 100 g of milk and the yeast in a bowl. Knead until the mixture becomes sticky, then cover it with cling film and leave to rise in the oven with the light on until it doubles in size.
2. Then transfer it into a larger bowl and incorporate the remaining flour and milk, the sugar, the grated peel of the two citrus fruits, the egg and the salt and mix first with a spoon and then by hand.
3. When the dough begins to compact, add a small piece of room temperature butter at a time, kneading until it is absorbed.
4. Shape the dough into a loaf and leave it to rise in the oven with the light on until it doubles in size. It will take about 3 hours.
5. Then roll out the dough on a floured pastry board until it is 1cm/1.5cm thick. Using an 8 cm diameter pastry cutter , cut out as many discs as possible, then make the central hole with a smaller one (maximum 2 cm).
6. Leave them to rise again, well spaced apart, on a baking tray lined with baking paper. It will take about 1 hour.
7. Then cut the baking paper with the help of scissors so that each pancake has its own square.
8. Heat the seed oil in an iron pan and once it reaches 170°C start frying the frias until they are swollen and golden.
9. Drain them and, after passing them quickly on absorbent paper, roll them in sugar. Serve them piping hot.

Speaking of fried desserts: don't miss our donuts , also excellent baked!

And here is a video recipe made by a typical Sardinian family, the ingredients are very similar to ours, however they do not prepare the yeast and the leavening is much shorter . We recommend following our steps, but even in this case the result is guaranteed:

storage

The fried friars are good freshly made but can be stored in a paper bag for a couple of days .