Carnival, time for chiacchiere

These irresistible fried pastry sheets dusted with icing sugar are, together with castagnole, the Carnival sweet par excellence. Depending on the Italian region where they are made, they take different names: Bugie in Piedmont, Chiacchiere in Apulia, Sicily and Calabria, Crostoli in Veneto, Cioffe in Abruzzo and Frappe in Rome. They all descend from a single, unmistakable ancestor dating back to an ancient tradition: frictilia, sweets made of eggs and flour fried in pork fat, which in ancient Rome women made to celebrate the Saturnalia (the festival corresponding to our Carnival). This sweet was served to the crowds who took to the streets to celebrate, and since it was simple to make, large quantities could be produced quickly and cheaply.

But there is also an anecdote that links them to Naples and to the Savoy queen who, having spent too long chatting one day, was seized by sudden hunger and asked the court cook, Raffaele Esposito, to make her a sweet – which was given the name Chiacchiere (“chatter”).

Sprinkled with sugar, dipped in chocolate or honey, fried or baked, in countless variations, Chiacchiere have come down to us through the centuries.

Incredibly crumbly and crisp, full of bubbles, with a pastry that is thin yet tasty and noticeable on the palate, light as a cloud and never greasy: even though they are fried, when they go “crunch” they literally melt in the mouth!