recipes
Manuel’s traditional Maltese figolli
2022-03-16

Ingredients
For the pastry
- 1kg plain flour (Lamb brand)
- 2 heaped tsp baking powder
- 450g chilled butter, diced (Benna)
- 300g icing sugar (Lamb brand)
- 6 egg yolks
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- Zest 2 lemons and 2 oranges
- Juice 2 oranges
For the filling
- 850g pure ground almonds ( Lamb brand)
- 650g icing sugar (Lamb brand)
- 6 egg whites
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- Finely grated zest 3 lemons
- 100g chopped almonds or pistachios, optional (Lamb Brand)
For the royal icing
- 500g royal icing
- 2 egg whites
- Juice ½ lemon
You will also need
- Melted chocolate for coating
- Coloured sugar paste for coating
- Coloured dredges
- Chocolate and hazelnut cream
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Method
Start by making the pastry. I always use the large bowl of my food processor and prepare the pastry in 2 batches or 500g flour each. Place the flour, butter, baking powder, icing sugar and zests and into the food processor and blitz to a crumb. Add in the orange juice, vanilla and egg yolks and blitz to a soft pastry. Chill for 15 minutes. Meanwhile, make the almond filling by blitzing together the ground almonds, icing sugar, egg whites, vanilla and lemon zest to a paste. Remove from the bowl and stir in the chopped nuts if using. Use the pastry and almond filling to make the figolli. Also spread over the chocolate and hazelnut cream if using before covering with pastry. Bake in the oven at 180°C for 35-40 minutes depending on their size. Decorate the figolli once completely cold. Cover with melted chocolate, sugar paste and piped royal icing and decorate with coloured dredges.
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Il-figolli ta’ Manuel
Ingredients
Għall-għaġina
- kilo dqiq plain
- 2 kuċċarini trab tal-ħami (baking powder)
- 300g zokkor tal-ġelu (icing sugar)
- 450g butir bla melħ
- il-qoxra maħkuka ta’ 2 lumijiet u 2 larinġiet
- il-meraq ta’ 2 larinġiet
- 6 isfra tal-bajd
Għall-mili
- 800g lewż pur mitħun
- 640g zokkor tal-ġelu
- il-qoxra maħkuka ta’ 3 lumijiet
- 5-6 abjad tal-bajd
- kuċċarina essenza tal-vanilla
- għandek bżonn ukoll il-marżipan, il-ġelu u ċ-ċikkulata biex iżżejjen il-figolli
Method
Ibda billi tlesti l-għaġina. Għarbel id-dqiq, it-trab tal-ħami u z-zokkor tal-ġelu fi skutella kbira. Żid il-butir jew il-marġerina u agħġen bil-ponot ta’ subgħajk sakemm ikollok taħlita mrammla. Żid il-qxur maħkuk tal-lumi u tal-larinġ, il-meraq frisk tal-larinġ u l-isfra tal-bajd u ħawwadhom flimkien sakemm ikollok għaġina ratba. Geżwer l-għaġina fil-cling film u kessaħha fil-friġġ għal 30 minuta. Sadattant lesti l-mili. Poġġi l-ingredjenti kollha flimkien fi skutella kbira u ħawwadhom b’idejk biex tifforma taħlita ratba. Ara li t-taħlita ma tkunx twaħħal. Meta l-għaġina tkun kesħet u l-mili jkun lest, ibda fforma l-figolli. Iftaħ l-għaġina fuq wiċċ miksi bid-dqiq għal ħxuna ta’ madwar ¾ ċm. Biex taqtagħha uża l-forom tal-ħadid (għandek bżonn 2 forom tal-għaġina għal kull figolla). Iksi landa bil-karta forn u poġġi l-forom fiha. Imbagħad, iftaħ l-intrita, bħalma tkun għamilt għall-għaġina, u aqta’ forma għal kull figolla. Idlek ħafif nofs il-forom tal-għaġina bl-ilma u għatti kull biċċa bl-intrita. Għatti l-intrita bil-forma l-oħra tal-għaġina biex b’hekk kull figolla jkollha qiegħ tal-għaġina, saff intrita fin-nofs u wiċċ ieħor tal-għaġina. Aħmihom f’temperatura ta’ 180oC għal 35-40 minuta, skont id-daqs. Meta jkunu lesti, oħroġhom mill-forn u ħallihom jiksħu sew qabel taqlagħhom mil-laned. Għall-aħjar riżultat, żejjen il-figolli l-ġurnata ta’ wara, biċ-ċikkulata, il-marżipan, il-ġelu u l-boċċi tal-fidda. Meta tlesti t-tiżjin u l-ġelu jkun għaqad, geżwirhom fil-cling film biex jibqgħu friski. Tista’ tlestihom minn 3 ġimgħat qabel….jekk għandek il-ħila tistenna daqshekk biex taqsamhom!
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