Although it has religious origins, this festivity has become popular all over the world and is celebrated with public parades featuring playful elements and colourful costumes. The best-known carnivals are the Carnival of Venice in Italy and the Rio Carnival in Brazil, which are globally renowned and attract tourists from all corners of the world.
The common element of Carnival is the use of costumes and masks: from traditional Italian ones such as Pulcinella, Gioppino, Harlequin… to more creative and original ones representing film or cartoon characters.
This year, Carnival celebrations will be somewhat different, and many of us will be spending it at home with our children. This is why we have created some carnival masks that you can download for free and print conveniently at home by clicking here! This is a great way to save money and still have fun as a family.
Another activity we suggest trying is making the famous Italian “chiacchiere”, known abroad as angel wings, a delicious crisp pastry sprinkled with powdered sugar, a traditional Carnival treat.
The funniest thing about these pastries, which are popular all over Italy, is that they have different names, some of them rather bizarre, depending on the region or area where you live. For example, they are known as “bugie” in Liguria and Piedmont, “sfrappe” in Marche, “lattughe” in the provinces of Brescia and Mantua, “cioffe” in Abruzzo, “cróstoli” in Trentino, “maraviglias” in Sardinia and there are plenty more! What do you call them?
So today we have come up with a lighter recipe, suitable for the whole family, with wholemeal flour, no butter and baked instead of the traditional frying method! Before we start making them, we should mention that wholemeal “chiacchiere” are a rustic version for those who prefer wholemeal flour that is not very refined and is rich in bran and fibre, for a healthy version, which give these pastries a very unique, rustic flavour. Unlike the traditional ones, their structure is not elastic enough to form the characteristic bubbles that make them really crumbly. In fact, it is certainly a different kind of pastry compared to the one we are used to eating, but much healthier and more genuine!
Ingredients for about 350 gr. of “chiacchiere”:
250 g wholemeal flour
30 ml vegetable oil
2 tbsp Marsala wine (optional)
half a tablespoon baking powder
50 g cane sugar
2 eggs
zest of one lemon or orange
icing sugar
Preparation:
Put the flour, baking powder, sugar, and lemon or orange zest into a bowl and mix together;
Add the two lightly beaten eggs, the oil and the Marsala wine;
Knead until you form a smooth, even ball of dough (this will take about 5 minutes);
Leave to rest in the fridge for an hour;
Take the dough out of the fridge and roll it out very thinly. If you have one, use a pasta machine (I rolled out the dough to a thickness of 4);
Cut out some rectangles, cut them in the middle and place them on a baking tray lined with parchment paper;
Bake at 180 °C for about 5 minutes or until the “chiacchiere” are lightly browned on the edges;
Leave to cool and sprinkle with icing sugar.
Now all you need to do is get down to work, have fun!
Celebrate Carnival at home while saving money with home-made masks and “chiacchiere”!
Although it has religious origins, this festivity has become popular all over the world and is celebrated with public parades featuring playful elements and colourful costumes. The best-known carnivals are the Carnival of Venice in Italy and the Rio Carnival in Brazil, which are globally renowned and attract tourists from all corners of the world.
This year, Carnival celebrations will be somewhat different, and many of us will be spending it at home with our children. This is why we have created some carnival masks that you can download for free and print conveniently at home by clicking here! This is a great way to save money and still have fun as a family.
Another activity we suggest trying is making the famous Italian “chiacchiere”, known abroad as angel wings, a delicious crisp pastry sprinkled with powdered sugar, a traditional Carnival treat.
The funniest thing about these pastries, which are popular all over Italy, is that they have different names, some of them rather bizarre, depending on the region or area where you live. For example, they are known as “bugie” in Liguria and Piedmont, “sfrappe” in Marche, “lattughe” in the provinces of Brescia and Mantua, “cioffe” in Abruzzo, “cróstoli” in Trentino, “maraviglias” in Sardinia and there are plenty more! What do you call them?
Ingredients for about 350 gr. of “chiacchiere”:
Now all you need to do is get down to work, have fun!