Here's the story behind them behind these delicious fried Italian cookies called Struffoli.
Struffoli is an absolute requirement at the end of a Neapolitan Christmas day dinner.
For centuries they were prepared in convents by nuns and then distributed to noble families at Christmas as a thank-you for their generosity.
Each convent had its own closely guarded secret recipe.
The sugary aromas drifted from the convent ovens Neapolitans would gather near the convent gates waiting to purchase them through a barred window or the convent wheel which may explain the long-held preference for buying desserts rather than making them at home.
These deep-fried balls of dough are the size of marbles, crunchy on the outside, fluffy and light inside then covered in honey.
Some are decorated with colored sprinkles, pieces of candied orange rind, or candied pumpkin.
An amazing honey glaze over delicate puffy fried dough rounds.
An Italian must make at Christmas time if they last that long before our Italian Christmas Eve traditions.
There are so many names for them besides Struffoli, like honey chichers, honey balls, fried honey cookies, pignolata, honey dipped dough balls, just to name a few from different Regions in Italy.
We love holiday foods, you may also like to scroll through our 25 Favorite Cookies and our One Stop Cookie Shop.
A traditional and classic fried cookie and it just wouldn't be Christmas without them in our family!
Buon Natale, scroll all the way down to the recipe card for printable instructions.
Struffoli is an absolute requirement at the end of a Neapolitan Christmas day dinner.
For centuries they were prepared in convents by nuns and then distributed to noble families at Christmas as a thank-you for their generosity.
Each convent had its own closely guarded secret recipe.
The sugary aromas drifted from the convent ovens Neapolitans would gather near the convent gates waiting to purchase them through a barred window or the convent wheel which may explain the long-held preference for buying desserts rather than making them at home.
These deep-fried balls of dough are the size of marbles, crunchy on the outside, fluffy and light inside then covered in honey.
Some are decorated with colored sprinkles, pieces of candied orange rind, or candied pumpkin.
An amazing honey glaze over delicate puffy fried dough rounds.
An Italian must make at Christmas time if they last that long before our Italian Christmas Eve traditions.
There are so many names for them besides Struffoli, like honey chichers, honey balls, fried honey cookies, pignolata, honey dipped dough balls, just to name a few from different Regions in Italy.
We love holiday foods, you may also like to scroll through our 25 Favorite Cookies and our One Stop Cookie Shop.
A traditional and classic fried cookie and it just wouldn't be Christmas without them in our family!
Buon Natale, scroll all the way down to the recipe card for printable instructions.
