L'Italo-Americano

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 24, 2020 www.italoamericano.org 26 L'Italo-Americano LA BUONA TAVOLA RECIPES COOKING TIPS SEASONAL DISHES FRANCESCA BEZZONE I n truth, our title is not entirely correct: m o s t a c c i o l i a r e t y p i c a l o f m a n y regions of the South, not only of Calabria, and dozens of variations exists. They have in common an a n c i e n t o r i g i n a n d t h e i r main ingredient, vincotto (cooked wine) or honey. While vincotto is, according to many, the original base ingredient of these cookies, honey is easier to find and manage, so we'll propose a h o n e y r e c i p e h e r e . W i t h h o n e y o r v i n c o t t o , t h e s e cookies are delicious! The term itself mostac- cioli comes from the Latin m u s t a c e u m , a n o u n t h a t d e r i v e s , i n t u r n , f r o m m u s t u m , " m u s t . " O u r Roman ancestors prepared mustaceum, a soft bread prepared with must cooked with bay leaves, to be offe- r e d a t w e d d i n g g u e s t s . J u v e n a l a n d C i c e r o b o t h mentioned mustaceum in their works, and Cato even gave a recipe for it in his De Agri Cultura, where he said i t w a s m a d e w i t h f l o u r , must, aniseed and cumin. A c c o r d i n g t o L u i g i Accattatis, who compiled a d i c t i o n a r y o f t h e Calabrian dialect in the late 1970s, mostaccioli as we k n o w t h e m t o d a y h a v e Arabic origins and they are defined "a cookie introdu- ced by the Arabs, obtained by mixing flour and honey or vincotto, with the addi- tion of spices and baked." Accattatis also mentioned they were made mostly to b e c o m e a w e d d i n g f a v o r . Indeed, Calabrian traditions say that a large mostacciolo s h o u l d b e b r o u g h t t o t h e house of the groom when t h e b r i d e l e a v e s h e r o w n home to go to church, so that he knew she was on her way to the altar. The cookie was then consumed at the wedding reception by the guests. It seems our mostaccio- li became popular in 1653, when San Domenico, the patron saint of the Kingdom of Naples, distributed them to the victims of a deadly earthquake in the area of Sariano, Calabria. This is why, here, their production and recipe is linked to the Dominicans and their con- vents. Calabrian mostaccioli are a bit of a work of art: the mostazzolari, mostaccioli m a k e r s a n d v e n d o r s , a r e known for their designs and t h e f i n e w a y s t h e y u s e t o decorate them. However, traditional shapes — the basket, the swordfish, the heart, the palm tree — are well-defined and they all go back to the ancient tradi- tion of religious offerings. M o s t a c c i o l i C a l a b r e s i h a v e a P A T ( t r a d i t i o n a l agro-food product) denomi- nation and they are, today, largely made with honey. T h e r e c i p e s a r e m a n y , because as it often happens with traditional delicacies, every family tends to have their own. I selected the one proposed by food blogger F r a n c e s c a L u c i s a n o , because she uses ingredients simple to find and the shape of her mostaccioli is nice but not too difficult to execute. Ingredients For the cookies 1 lbs of honey (if you want a s w e e t e r , m o r e d e l i c a t e cookie, you should use wild- f l o w e r o r a c a c i a h o n e y . Chestnut honey or any other very intense, very fragrant honey will give you stron- ger-flavored cookies) 1.3 lbs of flour 3 egg yolks 1.5 tsp of baking powder To decorate 1/2 lbs of honey sugar sprinkles On a flat surface, sift the f l o u r a n d m i x w i t h t h e baking powder, making a hole in the middle to add the w e t i n g r e d i e n t s , t h e e g g yolks and the honey. With a fork, whisk the honey and e g g t o g e t h e r , t h e n s t a r t adding the flour little by lit- tle. Once the dough begins to be smoother, work with your hands, adding some flour if it feels too sticky. R o l l t h e d o u g h i n t o a cylinder, long enough to cut 7 or 8 smaller cylinders of about 140 gr (5 oz) in wei- g h t . M a k e s u r e y o u k e e p some dough aside for deco- ration. Take each of the smaller c y l i n d e r s a n d r o l l i t o u t until it measure about 30 cm in length (12 in) and 4 c m i n w i d t h ( 1 . 5 i n ) . I f n e c e s s a r y , f l a t t e n i t w i t h your hands so that it's not thicker than 1 in. Do the same for all the c y l i n d e r s , a n d p l a c e t h e " c o o k i e s " o b t a i n e d o n a large oven dish covered with parchment paper. Take the leftover dough, and make thin "ropes" rol- l i n g i t o u t . W i t h t h e s e "ropes" you can decorate the mostaccioli as you please. In a l t e r n a t i v e , y o u c a n u s e cookie cutters, make small c o o k i e s a n d d e c o r a t e t h e m o s t a c c i o l i w i t h t h o s e instead. Press your decorations delicately but firmly on the mostaccioli, then bake the cookies in a static oven at 180 C (360 F) for about 40 minutes, or until they gain a nice, dark gold color. Once they are out of the o v e n , b r u s h t h e m w i t h abundant honey while they are still hot. D e c o r a t e w i t h s u g a r sprinkles then let the honey dry for a few hours before serving. Honey mostaccioli can be kept in an air tight container and they can last for up to three weeks. They are not suitable for home freezing. Traditional mostaccioli are typical of many areas of the South (Photo: anna q./Shutterstock) Calabria's own Christmas cookies: mostaccioli

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