Zeppola is a small, deep-fried round cake from southern Italy often filled with custard or sweetened ricotta. It can also be savory and is sometimes served on St. Joseph’s Day. It can be baked or fried, and served with honey or whipped cream.
A zeppola is a southern Italian dessert, a small deep-fried round cake, resembling a large donut, that is often filled with custard or with fillings close to that used in traditional cannoli. The plural of zeppola can be written as zeppoli or zeppole, and to confuse things, the little cakes can have two completely different names: sfinge, or Bigne di San Giuseppe (St. Joseph’s cakes). The latter name refers to the fact that zeppole are often served on St. Joseph’s Day, March 19, which is somewhat analogous to the celebration of Father’s Day in the United States, although it also honors Joseph, husband of the Virgin Mary .
Each donut is relatively small, about two inches (5.08 cm) wide. The dough used to make them is typically quick bread dough, although some variations may use leavened bread dough. The dough is often not sweetened and depends on filling or dipping to add sweetness. In the simplest form, the zeppole may not be filled and are simply given a light dusting of cinnamon sugar. Other times, bakeries make the distinction between a zeppola and a sphinx by suggesting that sphinxes are those zeppole filled with custard, while a true zeppola is always filled with a sweetened ricotta.
In Italy, particularly in the southern regions, and along the Italian peninsula, you will notice zeppole sold in most bakeries. As St. Joseph’s Day approaches, numerous street vendors, called friggitorie, meaning fried food stalls, sell zeppola to the waiting crowds. You will also find these little cakes filled with some ingredients that are unusual in some regions. For example, they may be savory rather than sweet and contain anchovy paste, ricotta with ground chickpeas and spices, or a variety of other ingredients.
There are some recipes for zeppole that are baked rather than fried. Other recipes suggest lightly cooking each donut before frying. The authors of these recipes claim that pre-cooking reduces fat and frying time and results in a lighter, lower calorie dessert. If you want to cut calories, baking would be the way to go, and you can cut calories even further by filling the zeppoli with any type of jam or fruit spread instead of custard or cottage cheese.
Another popular way to serve a zeppola is to dip it in honey. In many regions, when sweet zeppoli are made and whether or not they are filled, they are given a dollop of whipped cream on top and then topped with a cherry. If you buy them at a bakery, they may have been sitting around for a while. Some argue that the best way to eat them is straight from the fry vendors, when they’re hottest and freshest. Of course, preparing them at home means you can eat them right after you’ve allowed them to cool off a bit.
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