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Pestiños
Anise fritters in honey
Pestiños: Andalusian anise fritters glazed in warm honey
When Holy Week and Christmas come round, convent turnstiles and village kitchens from Cádiz to Granada fill trays with pestiños: little folded parcels of dough flavoured with sesame, anise and orange, fried until crisp and blistered and then dipped in honey. The dough traditionally takes a splash of white wine, which makes it bubble and crunch; orange juice works too, and is the alcohol-free option in the list. A common mistake is frying them in oil that is too hot, which browns the outside before the folds of dough cook through and crisp. Chef's tip: roll the dough really thin; thick pestiños stay doughy in the middle and soak up oil.
- Total time
- 70 min
- Difficulty
- medium
- Serves
- 8
Ingredients
For the dough
- ½ cup olive oil
- 1 strip orange peelno white pith
- 1 tbsp aniseed
- 1 tbsp sesame seeds
- ½ cup dry white winealcohol-free: 100 ml fresh orange juice
- 10 ½ oz plain flourplus extra for rolling
- 1 pinch salt
For frying and the glaze
- 3 ¼ cups sunflower or mild olive oilfor frying
- 7 oz honey
- 3 tbsp water
To serve
- 1 tbsp sesame seeds (optional)toasted
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Method
0/7 doneStep 1: Heat ½ cup olive oil in a small pan with 1 strip orange peel over a medium heat until the peel turns dark golden, about 3 minutes. Take off the heat, remove the peel and add 1 tbsp aniseed and 1 tbsp sesame seeds; they will sizzle. Leave to cool for 10 minutes.
13 minStep 2: Pour the warm oil into a bowl with ½ cup dry white wine. Add 10 ½ oz plain flour and 1 pinch salt and knead for 5 minutes into a soft, smooth dough that leaves the bowl clean. Cover and rest for 30 minutes.
35 minStep 3: Roll the dough out on a lightly floured surface until 1–2 mm thick, and cut into 8 cm squares.
Step 4: Fold two opposite corners into the middle, overlapping, and press with a dab of water so they stick. You get a little tube open at both ends.
Step 5: Heat 3 ¼ cups sunflower or mild olive oil in a deep pan to 350°F, when a scrap of dough rises at once with lively bubbles. Fry 4–5 pestiños at a time for 1–2 minutes a side, until blistered and deep golden. Drain on kitchen paper.
15 minStep 6: Warm 7 oz honey and 3 tbsp water in a wide pan over a low heat until runny but not boiling. Dip each pestiño in, turn to coat and lift onto a rack to set.
5 minStep 7: Scatter with toasted sesame if you like. They keep for a week in a tin, layered between baking paper.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 390 kcal
- Protein
- 5 g
- Carbs
- 54 g
- Fat
- 17 g
- Fibre
- 2 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does pestiños take?
- About 70 minutes in total: 40 minutes to prepare and 30 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 8 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegetarian?
- Yes. It has no meat or fish.
- Can I make it ahead?
- Yes. It keeps well, so you can cook it earlier in the day or the day before and reheat it.
- What can I use instead of aniseed?
- Fennel seeds, same amount (milder).
- What can I use instead of sesame seeds?
- Poppy seeds or finely chopped pumpkin seeds, same amount.
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