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Pettole di Santa Cecilia (Apulian Fried Dough Balls)

Soft Saint Cecilia pettole, traditional fritters from Puglia made with flour, yeast and oil: golden puffs to start the holidays.
Recipe Pettole di Santa Cecilia (Apulian Fried Dough Balls)
  • Difficulty Medium
  • Preparation 30 minutes
  • Cooking 5 minutes
  • Servings for 30 pettole

Have you ever wished you could open your front door and be wrapped in an unmistakable festive aroma? With this recipe for Saint Cecilia pettole that magic comes true: soft golden clouds whose simple, wholesome flavor wins over grown-ups and kids alike, bringing the joy of sharing into your home. Every year in Puglia, right at dawn on November 22, the streets wake up to the notes of the pastorali, traditional Christmas tunes, and the aroma of light, crispy pettole fills the air, a foretaste of the warmth of the holidays. These fritters, born from a batter of little more than flour and water, hide among the bubbles of their rising a fascinating story of anticipation, music and sweet winter dreams.

Knowing how to make fluffy pettole is an art handed down through generations; the secret lies in the long rise, an essential step that lets the pettole puff up until they are wonderfully soft inside and golden outside. Being so easy to make, these easy fried pettole are a recipe anyone can manage, perfect both for rustic family tables and for rich holiday buffets. You can keep them simply salted, or be tempted by the sweet pettole recipe, sprinkled with sugar, ideal if you are looking for a sweet winter treat. Some people also enrich the pettole batter with olives, sun-dried tomatoes or herbs, creating ever-new variations for special occasions.

Looking for more tasty ideas to serve at your celebrations? Also take a look at Grandma’s Fritters, Carnival Fritters or Sweet Pumpkin Fritters to discover new traditional flavors. If you love regional cooking, don’t miss Sardinian Zeppole, the Original Traditional Recipe or Latte Fritto (Fried Milk Custard).

Follow the method for golden pettole step by step and let yourself be won over by the unique pleasure of a tradition that smells of celebration: Saint Cecilia pettole for the holidays are a promise of togetherness that warms both the heart and the table.

Ingredients for 30 pettole

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Method

  1. To make the Pettole di Santa Cecilia, start by pouring the gluten-free bread flour into a large bowl. Make a small well in the center and add the active dry yeast. Pour in all the lukewarm water and mix vigorously with a wooden spoon until the ingredients are well combined. The dough should be very soft, almost like a runny batter rather than a normal bread dough.
    Pettole di Santa Cecilia, step 1: mixing the flour, yeast and water into a soft batter
  2. Now add the salt and the extra virgin olive oil and keep mixing with the spoon until they are fully incorporated into the dough. The final consistency should be that of a thick but pourable batter.
  3. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap or a clean kitchen towel and let the dough rise in a warm, draft-free place for about 2 hours, until it is nicely puffed and has doubled in volume.
    Pettole di Santa Cecilia, step 3: the batter risen and doubled in the bowl
  4. Once the rising time is up, heat plenty of sunflower oil in a deep pan or a deep fryer. The oil should reach a temperature of about 170 °C (340 °F). To check if the oil is ready, drop in a small piece of dough: if it rises to the surface right away and sizzles, the temperature is right.
  5. When the oil is hot, lower the heat slightly to medium. Using two spoons, scoop up small portions of dough, not too large, and gently drop them into the hot oil. The pettole will puff up immediately into irregular balls.
    Pettole di Santa Cecilia, step 5: spoonfuls of batter dropped into the hot oil
  6. Fry the pettole, turning them gently on both sides with a slotted spoon, until they are golden and crisp. Be careful not to cook them too quickly, or they will stay raw inside.
    Pettole di Santa Cecilia, step 6: pettole frying until golden and crisp
  7. Drain the golden pettole on paper towels to remove the excess oil. Now you can decide how to serve them: for the savory version, season them right away with a pinch of fine salt while they are still hot, or for the sweet version, roll them in sugar. Serve your Pettole di Santa Cecilia while still warm to enjoy them at their best. Finally, remember to download our App with exclusive content and fewer ads!

Variations and Alternatives

In the tradition of Puglia, Pettole di Santa Cecilia lend themselves to many tasty variations. For the savory version, you can enrich the dough with pieces of boiled salt cod, salted anchovies, boiled cauliflower florets, pitted black olives or chopped sun-dried tomatoes. For the sweet version, besides sugar, you can sprinkle them with cinnamon sugar, or serve them with honey, vincotto (a cooked grape must syrup from Puglia) or jam. Some variations add a pinch of sugar directly to the base dough to make them slightly sweet.

Tips

For perfect pettole, it is essential that the dough rises well and doubles in volume: place the bowl somewhere warm, such as near a radiator or in the turned-off oven with the light on. The oil temperature is crucial: if it is too low, the pettole will absorb oil and become greasy; if it is too high, they will burn outside and stay raw inside. Fry a few pettole at a time to keep the oil temperature steady. The dough should be very soft, almost like a batter: don’t worry if it seems too runny, that is exactly how it should be.

Storage

Pettole di Santa Cecilia are best eaten freshly made, still hot or warm, when they are crisp outside and very soft inside. They can be kept at room temperature in a closed container for 1-2 days, but they lose their characteristic crispness. Before serving them again, you can warm them briefly in the oven at 150 °C (300 °F) for a few minutes.

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