Learn how to make this classic Italian Homemade Struffoli Recipe, delicious fried dough balls coated in a sweet honey syrup.
Servings: 12
Prep Time: 40 minutesminutes
Cook Time: 20 minutesminutes
Resting Time: 5 minutesminutes
Total Time: 1 hourhour10 minutesminutes
Ingredients
For the Struffoli:
3 ½cups00 flour
zest of 1 orange
zest of 1 lemon
¼cupsugar
½teaspoonsea salt
6tablespoonslard or unsalted butter
4large eggs
2tablespoonsanise liqueur
1 to 2tablespoonscold water
sprinkles
candied fruit or citron
For the Syrup
1cuphoney
1/3cupsugar
1vanilla bean pod, seeds extracted
Instructions
On a clean surface, mix together the flour, sugar, salt, lemon zest, and orange zest until combined.
Next, cut in the fat using a pastry blender or better yet your fingers, like in my S cookies recipe, to make sure it is mixed in with the dry ingredients and no bigger than the size of couscous.
Form a well in the center for the flour.
Add in the eggs and anise liqueur and whisk together using a fork in the well.
Start to bring in the dry ingredients with the fork to combine.
Using a bench knife or your hands, bring the ingredients together.
You may need 1 to 2 tablespoons of water if it’s too dry or 1 to 2 tablespoons of flour if it's too wet.
Knead the dough for at least 5 to 7 minutes, but 10 to 12 minutes is recommended.
When finished, the dough should be smooth and soft. Transfer it to a bowl and cover it in plastic wrap and let it rest at room temperature for 30 minutes.
Transfer the dough to a clean surface and divide the dough into 4 big pieces.
Individually roll them out using your hands into long ropes about ½” thick.
Then simply using a knife or a bench knife (Aff link), cut them into small pieces.
Coat the dough balls in a little flour and mix.
Fry the dough balls in batches in your favorite neutral-flavored oil heated to 350° for only 1 to 2 minutes or until lightly browned while occasionally stirring it to ensure all sides are brown.
Set them to the side on paper towels to drain.
In a large-size pot, over low heat together the honey, sugar, and vanilla beans while constantly stirring with a spoon until the sugar is dissolved.
Add the fried dough balls to the honey and sugar mixture and coat by mixing with a spoon or rubber spatula.
Transfer to a plate and garnish with sprinkles and any citron you may want. Serve.
Notes
Make-Ahead: You can make this up to 1 day ahead of time.How to Store: Keep them covered at room temperature for up to 2 days or in the refrigerator covered for up to 3 days. This will not freeze well. I recommend reheating them slightly before serving, so they soften up a bit.Kneading the dough is crucial to incorporating the ingredients and ensuring you form strong gluten from the flour, so it does it for at least 5 minutes.It’s essential to make sure you let the dough rest for 30 minutes so that it is not overworked, resulting in a tough dough.Fry the dough in batches so that they do not stick together and form big clumps of dough ballsAs the struffoli topping cools down, the dough balls will become very sticky, perfect when forming your desired shape, a ring, or a mound.When making the dough, you may need 1 to 2 tablespoons of water if it’s too dry or 1 to 2 tablespoons of flour if it's too wet.I’ve seen several recipes with the struffoli formed into a ring/wreath-shaped mold, but feel free to serve in whichever shape you’d like.