Ingredients
DOUGH:
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup powdered sugar
- Pinch salt
- 2 tablespoons shortening
- 2 eggs
- 1/2 teaspoon lemon zest
FILLING:
- 1/2 cup chick peas, cooked
- 1/4 cup brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 2 tablespoons grated chocolate
- 1/2 cup finely chopped walnuts
- Vegetable oil, to fry
- 1/4 cup milk, to seal dough
- Powdered sugar, to dust cookies
Directions
Preheat vegetable oil to 360 degrees.
To make the dough, sift together flour, sugar and salt. Mix in shortening using hands or pastry cutter until crumbly. Add eggs and lemon zest. Mix until just incorporated.
Use pasta machine to roll out half the dough to 1/8-inch thickness and forming a long rectangular shape (roughly 15 inches by 3 inches), being careful not to overwork dough. Repeat with other half of dough. Set aside.
To make the filling, use fork to mash chickpeas thoroughly. Stir in brown sugar, honey, grated chocolate, and chopped walnuts.
Drop heaping teaspoonfuls of filling along length of rectangular dough (leaving 1-inch between spoonfuls) keeping to one side. There should be enough room for about 10 spoonfuls. With pastry brush use milk to moisten area around each filling spoonful. Fold dough lengthwise over filling and press down to remove any air and to seal edges. With a fluted pastry cutter or pizza cutter, cut into squares to form individual cookies. Repeat procedure with remaining filling and dough.
Fry cookies in hot vegetable oil until golden brown. Remove and place on paper towels to drain excess oil. Dust with powdered sugar. Serve the same day.
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By nowakmail
on January 03, 2012
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I remember reading somewhere that those from the Molise region tended to use chestnuts in their filling (plus, my family lived on the coast - perhaps that accounts for the difference? My father's parents were from Roseto degli Abruzzo and Montepagano and my grandmother only ever used ceci/garbanzo beans in her cagunetti!
Molise (pronounced [moˈliËze] (Molisano: Mulise is a region of Southern Italy, the second smallest of the regions. It was formerly (until 1963 part of the region of Abruzzi e Molise (with Abruzzo and now a separate entity. Molise is the newest Italian region, since it was established in 1963, when the region Abruzzi e Molise was split in two. It became effective only in 1970.
By boodoo1900
on January 14, 2011
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I am from Abruzzo, which is the original area in which calcionetti are made. I am compelled to write to say that the REAL calcionetti are not made with chick peas. NEVER. The original filling is made with chestnuts. So please, do not call them calcionetti, because the real ones are made with chestnuts. Thank you.
By nzagami_3983364
Walnut, CA
on October 12, 2006
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If you have seen the promotional video from Sara's Secrets with the heartfelt family on a quest to find their mother's recipe for this delicious treat, you will notice that the video mentions dried chickpeas and dried chestnuts. The walnuts are substituted in the recipe but make a nice touch as, like me, someone on the west coast does not have access to dried chestnuts (learn something new every day! The recipe was straightforward but a good tip: don't over/under work the gluten in the dough- it makes all the difference for the perfect crust. The filling is very hot so proceed with caution when it is time to indulge. Almost comparable to baklava. Very good overall.
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