Zeppole (; : ''zeppola'') are

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance languag ...

pastries Pastry refers to a variety of doughs (often enriched with fat or eggs), as well as the sweet and savoury baked goods made from them. The dough may be accordingly called pastry dough for clarity. Sweetened pastries are often described as '' bak ...

consisting of a

deep-fried Deep frying (also referred to as deep fat frying) is a cooking method in which food is submerged in hot fat, traditionally lard but today most commonly oil, as opposed to the shallow frying used in conventional frying done in a frying pan. N ...

dough ball of varying size but typically about in diameter. These

fritter A fritter is a portion of meat, seafood, fruit, vegetables, or other ingredients which have been Batter (cooking), battered or breading, breaded, or just a portion of dough without further ingredients, that is deep-frying, deep-fried. Fritters ar ...

s are usually topped with

powdered sugar Powdered sugar, also called confectioners' sugar and icing sugar, is a finely ground sugar produced by milling granulated sugar into a powdered state. It usually contains between 2% and 5% of an anti-caking agent—such as corn starch, potato ...

, and may be filled with

custard Custard is a variety of culinary preparations based on sweetened milk, cheese, or cream cooked with Eggs as food, egg or egg yolk to thicken it, and sometimes also flour, corn starch, or gelatin. Depending on the recipe, custard may vary in con ...

, jelly,

cannoli Cannoli are Sicilian pastries consisting of a tube-shaped shell of fried pastry dough, filled with a sweet, creamy filling containing ricotta cheese. Their size ranges from . In mainland Italy, the food is commonly known as (). In culi ...

-style

pastry cream Custard is a variety of culinary preparations based on sweetened milk, cheese, or cream cooked with egg or egg yolk to thicken it, and sometimes also flour, corn starch, or gelatin. Depending on the recipe, custard may vary in consistency from ...

or a

butter Butter is a dairy product made from the fat and protein components of Churning (butter), churned cream. It is a semi-solid emulsion at room temperature, consisting of approximately 81% butterfat. It is used at room temperature as a spread (food ...

-and-

honey Honey is a sweet and viscous substance made by several species of bees, the best-known of which are honey bees. Honey is made and stored to nourish bee colonies. Bees produce honey by gathering and then refining the sugary secretions of pl ...

mixture. The consistency ranges from light and puffy, to bread- or pasta-like. They are eaten to celebrate

Saint Joseph's Day Saint Joseph's Day, also called the Feast of Saint Joseph or the Solemnity of Saint Joseph, is in Western Christianity the principal feast day of Saint Joseph, husband of the Virgin Mary and legal father of Jesus Christ, celebrated on 19 March. ...

, which is a

Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

feast day.

History

Zeppole are typical of

Italian cuisine Italian cuisine is a Mediterranean cuisine#CITEREFDavid1988, David 1988, Introduction, pp. 101–103 consisting of the ingredients, recipes, and cooking techniques developed in Italy since Ancient Roman cuisine, Roman times, and later spread ...

, especially that of

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

Naples Naples ( ; ; ) is the Regions of Italy, regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 908,082 within the city's administrative limits as of 2025, while its Metropolitan City of N ...

, and

Lecce Lecce (; ) is a city in southern Italy and capital of the province of Lecce. It is on the Salentine Peninsula, at the heel of the Italian Peninsula, and is over two thousand years old. Because of its rich Baroque architecture, Lecce is n ...

. They originated in

ancient Rome In modern historiography, ancient Rome is the Roman people, Roman civilisation from the founding of Rome, founding of the Italian city of Rome in the 8th century BC to the Fall of the Western Roman Empire, collapse of the Western Roman Em ...

, when people started frying dough and putting sugar or cinnamon on it. However, the zeppole that is around today was created in the 18th century. These zeppole either have sugar, cinnamon or chocolate with them. They are also served in

Sicily Sicily (Italian language, Italian and ), officially the Sicilian Region (), is an island in the central Mediterranean Sea, south of the Italian Peninsula in continental Europe and is one of the 20 regions of Italy, regions of Italy. With 4. ...

, on the island of

Malta Malta, officially the Republic of Malta, is an island country in Southern Europe located in the Mediterranean Sea, between Sicily and North Africa. It consists of an archipelago south of Italy, east of Tunisia, and north of Libya. The two ...

, and in Italian communities in Canada and the United States. The Sardinian , although they are often italianized to ''zeppole'', are somewhat different. ''Zippole'' are eaten in Sardinia to celebrate

Carnival Carnival (known as Shrovetide in certain localities) is a festive season that occurs at the close of the Christian pre-Lenten period, consisting of Quinquagesima or Shrove Sunday, Shrove Monday, and Shrove Tuesday or Mardi Gras. Carnival typi ...

. They can be seen with different ingredients and different shapes. ''Zippole'' differ from zeppole since you use a funnel to put the dough into the oil. ''Zippole'' then come out as different shapes due to the spiral motion used with the funnel. Zeppole are known by other names, including ''bignè di San Giuseppe'' (in Rome) and ''sfinge''. They are traditionally consumed during the ''Festa di San Giuseppe'' ('Saint Joseph's Day'), celebrated every March 19, when they are sold on many streets and sometimes presented as gifts. The custom was popularized in the early 19th century by Neapolitan baker Pasquale Pintauro.

Variations

The terms ''zeppola'' and ''sfinge'' are also used to refer to

baked Baking is a method of preparing food that uses dry heat, typically in an oven, but it can also be done in hot ashes, or on hot stones. Bread is the most commonly baked item, but many other types of food can also be baked. Heat is gradually t ...

cream puffs A profiterole (), ''chou à la crème'' (), also known alternatively as a cream puff (US), is a filled French choux pastry ball with a typically sweet and moist filling of whipped cream, custard, pastry cream, or ice cream. The puffs may be emb ...

made from

choux pastry Choux pastry, or (), is a delicate pastry dough used in many pastries. The essential ingredients are butter, water, flour and eggs. Instead of a raising agent, choux pastry employs its high moisture content to create steam, as the water in ...

. Zeppole can also be savory, and consist of fried bread dough often filled with

anchovy An anchovy is a small, common forage fish of the Family (biology), family Engraulidae. Most species are found in marine waters, but several will enter brackish water, and some in South America are restricted to fresh water. More than 140 speci ...

. In parts of

Calabria Calabria is a Regions of Italy, region in Southern Italy. It is a peninsula bordered by the region Basilicata to the north, the Ionian Sea to the east, the Strait of Messina to the southwest, which separates it from Sicily, and the Tyrrhenian S ...

, the anchovy or a sultana variation is consumed on New Year's Eve and New Year's Day. In

, anchovy ''zeppoli'' are traditionally consumed during the

Lent Lent (, 'Fortieth') is the solemn Christianity, Christian religious moveable feast#Lent, observance in the liturgical year in preparation for Easter. It echoes the 40 days Jesus spent fasting in the desert and enduring Temptation of Christ, t ...

fasting period. This version of savory zeppole is known locally as ''sfinge''. A variation in

Sardinia Sardinia ( ; ; ) is the Mediterranean islands#By area, second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, after Sicily, and one of the Regions of Italy, twenty regions of Italy. It is located west of the Italian Peninsula, north of Tunisia an ...

is known as .

References

{{Pastries Anchovy dishes Catholic cuisine Cuisine of Abruzzo Cuisine of Sardinia Cuisine of Sicily Custard desserts Holiday foods Italian doughnuts Italian pastries Neapolitan cuisine Stuffed desserts

History

Variations

See also

References