Galani – A Venetian Carnival Cookie
Venetians enjoy desserts but seldom trouble to make them at home. This recipe is one that is the exception. Galani are basically fat deep-fried pastry that dates back to the Romans indulging during holidays get together and it originates from the word “bow”. It is also known by other names outside Venice like “bugie” (lies), chiacchere (chats) or “Crostoli” (crusties). A Cuisinart with a pasta hook attachment makes it easy to prepare galani’s dough. The recipe is for 40-50 galani but you may as well make two or three times the recipe once you get started …. They are always appreciated during the holidays!!!
Servings 40
Ingredients
- 4 cups sifted all-purpose flour 480 gr
- ½ cup sugar
- ½ Tbsp salt
- ¼ pound butter cut into small pieces at room temperature
- 3 large eggs
- Another 1 to 2 cups sifted all-purpose flour for kneading and cutting
- Cooking oil 1 cup minimum
- Powdered sugar 1/4 cup is typical
Instructions
- Place the 4 cups flour. the sugar. and the salt in a bowl. Mix thoroughly.
- Allow the butter to become quite soft. Add it to the dry ingredients in the bowl and knead together (with your fingers) until a mealy texture is attained.
- If you are using a mixer, put the mix in the bowl, add the eggs and start mixing with the pasta hook at medium speed until you get a dough that separates easily from the wall of the bowl. Add more flour a bit at a time if it the dough is still sticky to your hands.
- Turn the dough onto a dusted. pastry board and knead until uniform, at least s minutes, better 10 or more. Allow the dough to rest for at least 30 minutes while going on to the next step.
- Fill a deep fryer or a saucepan half full with good cooking oil. Heat the oil to 400 degrees. More about the temperature later.
- Take pieces of dough slightly larger than a golf ball and roll them out into a very thin sheet, much thinner than for a pie crust (almost translucid). Using a rotary cutting tool, preferably with a serrated cutting edge, cut the dough into squares, triangles, or any interesting shapes you may wish. Cut a line through the center. To make it more interesting, I thread one end of the galano through the center cut creating a twisted figure.
- Add the galani to the hot oil, a few at a time, making sure the temperature is around 400 F degrees. When added to the oil, the galani should start bubbling immediately but not violently.
- After 45 seconds or a few seconds longer, turn the galani with a fork. They should be a medium golden brown color. After another half minute the galani should be ready to remove from the oil. Place on paper towels to cool. Break one of them open to see if the dough is completely cooked.
- The galani should be crisp but not burnt. If the outside is golden but the inside soggy, roll the dough out more thinly and try again. If the galani are pale, increase the oil temperature a little. Once the dough thickness and the oil temperature have been set, the galani may be made fairly quickly, 2 or 3 being cooked at a time. Continue rolling out and cooking the galani until all the dough is exhausted.
- When the galani have cooled, dust them with powdered sugar. Some people prefer more sugar than others. Galani are eaten as a dessert or as a snack with a glass of medium sweet wine.
Notes
- If you are making the dough by hand, make a well in the center of the flour and add the eggs. They need not be beaten previously. Beat them with a fork while gradually pulling in a little four from the sides of the well. When the ingredients are well mixed, add sufficient four to produce a dough that can be kneaded without sticking to your hands.
- The dough must be kneaded until the texture is uniform. Other important factors are to have the proper thickness of the dough and to have the oil at the right temperature.
- If you have a pasta machine, you can use it to roll the dough very thin, just right for frying
- The dough may be prepared in advance and stored in the refrigerator for a day, but the results will not be quite so good.
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