le ciambelline
olive oil cookies

makes about 30 cookies

 

scant 2 cups (450 g circa) flour

scant 1/4 cup (50 g) sugar + more for dipping

1/2 cup + 2 Tbs (170 ml) extra virgin olive oil

1/2 cup (125 ml) Vin Santo [or Marsala or other oxidative wine]

2 tsps baking powder

 

Pour the flour onto a work surface and make a large wide well. Into the well pour the olive oil and vin santo, the sugar and the baking powder. Mix with a fork slowly incorporating flour until the dough comes together and you can work it with your hands. Work in as much flour as necessary until the dough is smooth, soft and elastic leaving aside the extra flour. Knead the dough just until it comes together to form a ball of dough.

To shape the cookies, cut the dough into chunks more or less the size of a walnut, roll each one on the work surface with your palm forming a length of dough and join the ends to make a little ring (ciambellina) 2 1/2 – 3 inches in diameter. Dip the cookies in sugar to coat one side and place them, sugar side up, on a cookie sheet.

Bake them at 200-210C / 390-400F for 20 - 25 minutes, until they are golden brown and slide freely on the cookie sheet. Remove the ciambelline from the pan and cool on a wire rack.

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