By Donatella Cinelli Colombini

In Montalcino, long ago, it was possible to buy these only during the 40 days Easter. Only bakeries sold them, and with their vans they delivered all over the countryside. Even further back the farmer’s wives would bake them in the wood fire, placing them in the oven after everything else had been cooked, so the temperature was much lower.

The Corolli are doughnut shaped buns to be dunked in milk at breakfast timer. They are not very sweet so I always thought that they were “repentance” quite the opposite of the tasty cakes and desserts for carnival time or the rich Ricciarelli and Panforte for Christmas time.

INGREDIENTS FOR THE COROLLI DI MONTALCINO

A teaspoon of beer yeast, 600 g of flour, 100 g of sugar,60 g of butter, 250 g of sultanas, a pinch of aniseed, 5 g of salt, a few  Zibibbo berries

PREPARATION OF THE COROLLI DI MONTALCINO

Blend the yeast with 100g of flour and a little warm water. Leave the dough to rest for about half an hour until it begins to rise. Knead it again using the rest of the flour and adding 250g of water and all the other ingredients: sugar, butter (long ago it would have been lard), sultanas, aniseed and salt. As soon as the dough is nice and smooth leave it to rest for 30 minutes until it begins to rise again.…

L'articolo Corolli di Montalcino for Lent sembra essere il primo su Cinelli Colombini.

THE STORY BEHIND A NICKNAME

The nick name beccamorti (gravediggers) has been given to the Montalcino population in 1260 when they went to the Montaperti so slowly that when they got there the battle was over, and the Sienese, winning side, punished them, forcing them to bury all of the dead. And there were so many corpses that Dante said that their blood coloured the Arbia river red. An historic episode of which we cannot be proud which though later was cancelled through great demonstrations of courage in the centuries that followed when Montalcino defended its independence for so long that it remained the last free city in Italy(1559).

The Ossi di Morto biscuits (literally translated dead man’s bones) refer to the battle of Montaperti? Nobody knows.

In the past the Ossi di morto biscuits were in the glass containers in the Montalcino cupboards all year long. These used to be what was baked for last in the brick-ovens by the farmers after the bread, the tarts and cakes, together with the meringues made with egg whites and sugar.

So that’s what ossi di morto from Montalcino are, simple biscuits to be made at home that accompany very well Vin Santo from Fattoria del Colle.

INGREDIENTS FOR OSSI DI MORTO

Ingredients for 4 people:

100g of flour, 300g of sugar,200 g of almonds, 3 egg whites, 1 lemon, extra virgin olive oil

PREPARATION

parboil the almonds and peel them.…

L'articolo Ossi di Morto, is there a better way to remember Montalcino? sembra essere il primo su Cinelli Colombini.