Sunday, August 26, 2012

Italian Traditions: Croccante Recipe

Today is August 26th!!! And for somebody like me who grew up in Lecce {in Apulia, South of Italy} this day only means "Town-Fair"! It's the day in which the Catholic Church celebrates St. Oronzo, which is the Patron, protector, of my town {each city in Italy has a different Saint who protects the town}. The Fair starts on the 24th and ends the 26th at night with beautiful fireworks. The city is decorated with lights of all kinds and shapes. When you walk at night through the old streets of the city.. it's just a fantastic experience! There is music playing from some of the hundreds of "bancarelle", the stands selling different items... food, books, jewels, clothes... anything! 

These gorgeous pictures were taken the other night by one of my friends from Lecce.. you can see the Roman Amphitheater and all the lights in the back {and St. Oronzo's statue on top of the column!}. 
And down here..some of the lights.

One of things I miss the most every year is the so called "cupeta" {in my dialect} or "croccante" {in Italian}. It's a delicious treat made entirely of sugar and almonds.
So, this morning I woke up thinking of it... and I decided to make it!! I want my children to taste its deliciousness and to learn about some of my traditions...
I have to say that I never made it before.. but it came out really good and crunchy.. as it should be {the word Croccante means CRUNCHY!}. Here it is!!

If you want to make it you just need:
  • 2 cups of sugar 
  • 1 splash of water 
  • 4 oz. of peeled almonds (I used the slivered ones)
  1. Toast the almonds. You can use the oven or you can sautee' them on a non-stick skillet, until golden.
  2. Put the almonds on a piece of paper-wax inside a medium metal container (or a pyrex).
  3. Melt the sugar with the water in a "thick-base" sauce-pan at a medium-low heat. It will take a few minutes. Just be patient. The sugar will crystallize and then melt in a brownish gluey sauce. 
  4. Pour the caramel sauce on top of the almonds RIGHT AWAY covering them completely.
  5. Let it cool down.
  6. Finally, peel the paper off the croccante and cut in pieces. Enjoy!! and don't break your teeth!!!!! :))
Here's the recipe in pictures:


                         



Et Voila'!!


P.S.
This post is linked to the beautiful blog Create.Craft.Love. 
Please go check out some other great blogs participating in this Party!
:)






8 comments:

  1. Your pictures look amazing!! The Croccante looks so good, I want to try to make it. It looks like Peanut Brittle!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Looks delish and I LOVED seeing pictures of your lovely home town, Luisa!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Hi Luisa! Thank you for dropping by my blog. I'm returning the follow because your blog is wonderful (I'm still drooling over theose beautiful cakes you shared on "Sunday Cupcakes"!)

    Angela
    atypicalenglishhome.blogspot.co.uk

    ReplyDelete
  4. That sounds so easy lol. Here in India, it's sold at every candy store; we call it 'chikki'. But I never thought of trying to make it myself. Now I will, thanks to you. :)

    Shazia @ handmade-loveliness.blogspot.in

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you Shazia!! I'm glad to know it's also an Indian treat... :) I'll make some for my daughter's friend who's from India!

      Delete
    2. That's really sweet, I hope she likes ém! :)

      Delete

♥ ~Thank you for stopping by~ ♥ I love your comments!