Zeppole and Father's Day

When Father's Day comes round, many traditional sweets are made, including Zeppole di San Giuseppe.

Some of you will know them as Crispelle di Riso or Crispelle dei Benedettini: they are elongated rice fritters, enriched with orange and plenty of honey.

Their name "crispelle" comes from their “crespa”, rough surface. “Zeppola”, on the other hand, evokes their elongated shape, just like a “zeppa” (wedge).

Like every good old sweet, Zeppole di San Giuseppe were born in a religious setting. Invented by the nuns of the Benedictine Monastery in Catania in the 16th century, and for this reason also called “crespelle di riso uso benedettini” or “benedettine”, they are often associated with Father's Day – but why?

There are two interesting stories about this: the first sees bread with honey as the humble ancestor of rice zeppole. In the old days people would say “Cc'è mmeli, cc'è mmeli…” (there's honey, there's honey…) when a baby was born, because the father would offer bread and honey to relatives to celebrate. Rice zeppole are therefore just perfect for celebrating all dads!

The second story tells of a Joseph who, as well as being a carpenter, was also a fritter-maker, which is why fried zeppole are made in honour of Saint Joseph.