Sweet Strauben: the typical South Tyrolean recipe

Strauben with blueberry jam: ingredients and recipe to prepare the typical dessert of Trentino Alto Adige and South Tyrol.

Strauben ( straboli in Italian) is a typical dessert from Trentino Alto Adige and the South Tyrol area made with a dough based on flour, butter, milk, eggs and grappa which is fried creating a sort of large spiral with the help of a funnel . The name derives from the German term straub which means disheveled, tortuous, in reference to the typical shape of the dessert.

Trentino Alto Adige, Bavaria and Tyrol are the areas where this typical product is traditionally prepared and is never missing from village celebrations and festivals. Now let's see all the steps to make the recipe for strauben with cranberry jam!

How to prepare the strauben recipe

1. Combine the flour and a pinch of salt in a bowl. Mix then slowly pour in the milk until you obtain a smooth batter. Also add the grappa .
2. Divide the egg yolks from the egg whites and add the former to the batter, mixing well. Whip the egg whites until stiff and add them to the mixture, stirring gently from bottom to top to avoid dismantling them.
3. Cover the bowl and let the batter rest for at least 30 minutes.
4. Heat a pan with plenty of seed oil and bring it to 170-180°C.
5. Transfer the batter into the strauben funnel . If you don't have one, you can use a normal funnel and keep the exit hole plugged with your finger. Alternatively, a pastry bag with a small nozzle (max 0.5 cm) is also suitable.
6. With circular movements from the center outwards, create a snail of 20-25 cm in diameter. Let it fry until it is golden, turning it as soon as it has compacted.
7. Using a slotted spoon, remove it from the oil and pass it onto absorbent paper .
8. Serve hot, sprinkling it with icing sugar and accompanying it with blackcurrant jam .

The consistency is similar to that of crepes , perhaps a little thicker. In this video you can compare it with yours and see exactly how to fry the strauben and when they should be drained.

Conservation

Like any fried food, these typical Tyrolean pancakes are one of those quick and easy desserts to enjoy freshly prepared. If there are any leftovers, you can store them for a maximum of 1 day in an airtight container, in a non-humid place.

Origin and history

Today, strauben are the dessert par excellence for the holidays, especially Carnival and Christmas , but they cannot be missed even at village festivals. However, it is not clear when they were prepared for the first time. As mentioned, their name is a clear reference to the particular shape : if prepared by expert hands it resembles that of a snail, vice versa it is more tortuous, just as the term suggests.

Strauben have long been the wedding dessert . They were prepared the evening before the wedding when the groom joined the bride at her home to complete the preparations. Tradition, a bit like the pranks that are usually played today, dictates that they are stolen by the groom's friends or neighbors.

Read also

Kaiserschmarrn: the original recipe for the Austrian dessert that will win you over!