Ask Chef Walter: Bocconotto from Abruzzo – Walter Potenza

by Chef Walter Potenza, contributing writer

BOCCONOTTO FROM ABRUZZO

Almond, coffee, and chocolate in a pastry cup. Simply divine. Made during the Christmas season, it would be sinful not to have them throughout the year.

Friends:

My journey in search of the Christmas sweets of Italy’s regional traditions took me back to Abruzzo, where I was born. Every time I go home, I seem to find new delights. A friend suggested Castel Frentano, and with a camera at hand, departed seeking the homonymous bocconotti. The rich, creamy filled sweet tradition can vary from family to family. The name of this tasty pastry derives from a legend set in the early eighteenth century when coffee and cocoa began the journey into Abruzzo, destined for chocolate production, two critical ingredients of the bocconotti filling.

History tells us that in Castel Frentano, a village in the province of Chieti, a maid paid homage to her glutton and wealthy landowner one morning. She baked a type of sweets using chocolate and coffee, the two ingredients introduced in the country. After the completion, she realized the filling was too soft. She decided to repair the mischief by thickening the mixture with ground almonds and egg yolk, covering the top with additional short pastry, and dust with powder sugar.

Enraptured about the new version, the wealthy man asked for the name of such delight. She replied, “bocconotto” from the Italian word “Boccone,” consumed in one bite or two.

The dimensions of the bocconotto remained unadulterated until the middle of the 20th century when the size expanded into today’s version. Bocconotti is found throughout the region with various fillings, although the shortcrust remains the same.

Almond, coffee, and chocolate in a pastry cup. Simply divine. Made during the Christmas season, it would be sinful not to have them throughout the year.

Note: La Fabbrica di Bocconotto is located in Castel Frentano, on Via Fonte Barile 44. Their production offer sweet, savory, and gluten-free variants. Three-hour ride (225 KM), from Rome, eastward toward the Adriatic Sea. Worth the journey.

Watch video here

Bocconotti of Castel Frentano recipe

Ingredients for 10 bocconotti

For the shortcrust dough

2-3/4 cups of all-purpose flour – 4 egg yolks – 1/2 cup of granulated sugar – 3 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil – zest of 1/2 lemon

For the filling

1-1/2 cup of bottled water – 1/2 cup of granulated sugar – 1/2 cup of dark chocolate – 1/2 cup of toasted and chopped almonds – the ground cinnamon amount of choice – ½ tablespoon of ground espresso coffee – 2 egg yolks

Preparation

In a mixing bowl, whip the yolks with the sugar, the flour, the oil, and the grated lemon. Once the mixture is well-amalgamated, transfer the dough onto a clean work surface and knead it until it forms a solid ball.

To make the filling, dissolve the sugar in the water, bring it to a boil and continue until it develops a syrup.

Add the chocolate, the toasted almonds, the cinnamon, and the ground coffee mix well and let it cool. Once cooled, add the egg yolks and cinnamon, cook on low heat, and simmer until creamy consistency.

Grease the inner walls of 10 baking cups with oil or butter and cover the inside with a thin layer of shortcrust pastry. Press the dough lightly with your fingers.

Pour the chopped chocolate and almond filling into the cups, and finish with a dusting of cinnamon. Cover each bowl with shortbread and cook in a hot oven at 180 degrees for about 20 minutes. Leave to cool and dust the icing sugar.

Savory Bocconotti

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