Sicilian Cookie Raffanti

[marcella23]

I would like to know if anyone knows the recipe for Sicilian cookies called Raffanti ( I am not sure about the spelling). They're made with icing sugar and egg whites. The dough is then rolled into logs and then pieces are cut diagonally about an inch wide. When they are baked they look like a round cookie but have a white pillow on top. It is hard to explain without drawing a diagram. My mother has the recipe written down in Sicilian but I can not translate it. With her recipe the cookies never come out the way they're suppose to.
Does anyone know of any Sicilian Recipes Forum I can join?

[eyetalgal]

sounds like a variation of meringues...I'd try Ciao Italia.

[marcella23]

They don't come out like meringues more like a cookie. You could say a type of meringue for the pillow shape on the top but the round bottom is definitely a cookie. I've already tried Ciao Italia but I'll go back to it. Thanks.

[-Maria-]

I would like to know if anyone knows the recipe for Sicilian cookies called Raffanti ( I am not sure about the spelling). They're made with icing sugar and egg whites. The dough is then rolled into logs and then pieces are cut diagonally about an inch wide. When they are baked they look like a round cookie but have a white pillow on top. It is hard to explain without drawing a diagram. My mother has the recipe written down in Sicilian but I can not translate it. With her recipe the cookies never come out the way they're suppose to.
Does anyone know of any Sicilian Recipes Forum I can join?

I did a google search and couldn't find the recipe...

If you wish, I can try to translate your mom's recipe for you... will be sending you a private message.

[wldspirit]

There are MANY members here living in Italy and quite excellent at translations, by posting in the open forum, allows for these members to help with any translations that you may need.

wldspirit

[-Maria-]

Here's recipe 1

http://img249.imageshack.us/img249/3857 ... ide9fv.jpg

Raffinato (refined - Icing or confectioners sugar)
500 aisi (could she mean "icing" sugar?) zucchero
350 gr farina Monarchi
3 uova
1 bustina de lievitto Dr. Oetker Brand Baking Powder
1 bustina di vanilla
Mettere tutti insiemi e impastarli
como il pane
farli lievitare per 8 ore

forno 350 degrees
----------------------------

I understand it as....

500 of icing sugar (could she have meant 500 g of icing sugar?)

350 gr of Monarch flour (is she going by weight here?)

or did she mean 350g? 350g is just under 1 2/3 cups of flour

3 eggs

I packet of Dr. Oetker Brand Baking Powder

1 packet of vanilla (Dr. Oetker also produces this)

Mix all together and knead as you would like bread dough... let rise for 8 hours.

Bake at 350 degrees.
---------------------------

Marcella, she wrote 3 eggs.... could she have used 3 egg whites... just as you mentioned in your original post...

I will revise this recipe .. so don't bake just yet!! Not sure how much flour goes into this recipe...

Where she wrote 50:0 aisi.... 500? 50 ? it looks like the numbers were scribbled over... so not sure what happened here...

[-Maria-]

Recipe 2

http://img152.imageshack.us/img152/5971 ... peg2tj.jpg

1 LB of vanilla sugar

2 1/2 cups cake flour

I packet of Dr. Oetker Brand Baking Powder

a bit of cloves (garofano)

3 eggs

Oven at 300 degrees

Raffinati means refined sugar...

Marcella, please review... we may have to do further edits on this recipe...

I will eventually try both recipes... (love the smell of cloves!!)

[-Maria-]

Original jpeg file

http://img169.imageshack.us/img169/4387 ... ecp0nh.jpg

[vj]

Maria,
My goodness, how many cookies would that be ?
And thanks for linking the recipe image .
Valarie

[-Maria-]

No clue to as to how many!

50 or 500?

Valarie, now you've really got me thinking....not just how many.... but about the topping...

I would like to know if anyone knows the recipe for Sicilian cookies called Raffanti ( I am not sure about the spelling). They're made with icing sugar and egg whites. The dough is then rolled into logs and then pieces are cut diagonally about an inch wide. When they are baked they look like a round cookie but have a white pillow on top. It is hard to explain without drawing a diagram. My mother has the recipe written down in Sicilian but I can not translate it. With her recipe the cookies never come out the way they're suppose to. Question
Does anyone know of any Sicilian Recipes Forum I can join?

Marcella gives a good description as to how to roll these but I do have a question about the topping...

The egg whites and icing sugar are mixed as one unit... no?

Which is then brushed on the cookie during the last couple of minutes of baking.... I would think...

------------Update... couldn't resist...

Am baking some cookies today using info from Marcella's recipe...

If you mix 1 2/3 cup of icing/confectioners sugar, 2 1/2 cups of flour, 3 eggs, one packet of the baking powder, one packet of vanilla... you get this wonderful dough!! It will be sitting in my fridge for 8 hours...

Will bake them later today...

[marcella23]

Thanks Maria for translating the two recipes I sent and for including them in the forum. My mother now informs that whole eggs or egg whites can be used (she has tried both ways). In the first recipe she means 500 gr. aisi (icing) zucchero (sugar). She insists that the brand Monach flour should be used or the cookies won't come out right. In the second recipe you wrote 1 LB of vanilla sugar and my mother says that icing sugar should be used because it is the icing sugar that makes the pillow on top. Everything should be mixed all together. She is now thinking that 8 hours might be too long to let the dough rise and maybe that is the reason why they sometimes don't come out properly. The dough is then rolled into several long logs and then pieces are cut diagonally about an inch wide. You then make an indent using your thumb in the middle. Line pan with alumium foil place pieces on top and bake. Let cool then remove. The cookies should look like a tan round shape with a 3D white pillow on top. The cookies come out like this by themselves. The trick is to follow the recipe and directions properly. Let me know if they come out.