The Opera of Bartolomeo Scappi, 1570
If you are looking for a portable pick-me-up, that is sweet, savory, and delicious look no further than this recipe. Scappi's recipe for fruit-filled twist hist all the right spots. The moisture in the fruit prevents the dough from drying out, making this a perfect treat for the dayboard.
Original Recipe
Make a dough of two pounds of fine flour with six fresh egg yolks, two ounces of rosewater, an ounce of leaven moistened with warm water, four ounces of either fresh butter or rendered fat that does not smell bad, and enough salt. That dough should be kneaded well for half an hour. Make a thin sheet of it, greasing it with either melted butter that is not too hot or with rendered fat. With the pastry wheel, cut the edges one after the other, which are always quite a bit thicker than the rest. Sprinkle the dough with four ounces of sugar and an ounce of cinnamon. Then get a pound of currants that have been brought to a boil in wine, a pound of dates cooked in that wine and cut up small, and a pound of seeded muscatel raisins that have been brought to a boil in wine; combine all those ingredients and mix them with sugar, cinnamon, cloves and nutmeg. Spread that mixture out over the sheet of dough along with a few little gobs of butter. Beginning at the long edge of the dough, roll it up like a wafer cornet, being careful not to break the dough. A twist like that needs only three rolls so it can cook well; it should not be too tight. Grease its surface with melted butter that is not too hot. Begin at one end to roll it up, not too tightly, so it becomes like a snail shell or a maze. Have a tourte pan on hand lined with a rather thick sheet of the same dough greased with melted butter and gently put the twist on it without pushing it down. Bake it in an oven or braise it with a moderate heat, not forgetting to grease it occasionally with melted butter. When it is almost done, sprinkle sugar and rosewater over it. Serve it hot. The tourte pan in which the twists are baked has to be ample and with low sides.
Ingredients
For the filling
1 cup dried currants or raisins
1 cup raisins
1 cup chopped dates
1 cup red wine
1/4 cup sugar (I used golden sugar)
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
1/4 tsp. cloves
Note: I used "Duke's Powder"
Instructions
Mix together all ingredients in a pot and cook until soft. Set aside to absorb the remaining liquid and cool while you work on the dough.
Ingredients
For the Dough
1 packet yeast
2/3 cup water
3 1/2 cups flour
3 tbsp. or to taste rosewater
3 egg yolks
4 ounces butter
1/2 tsp. salt
Instructions
Add yeast to the flour and mix well
Add water, rosewater, egg yolks butter, and salt, and knead the dough for 20 minutes if kneading by hand, or, 7 minutes if using a mixer and dough hook. The dough should be supple and not sticky.
Spray a baking sheet with a bit of oil before you begin shaping the dough.
Divide the dough into eight pieces. Shape each piece into a rectangle.
Divide the fruit filling among the rectangles and roll the long sides of the rectangle up into a cylinder. Then shape it like a cinnamon roll.
Place it onto the oiled sheet and allow it to rise for 30 minutes. While the dough is rising, preheat your oven to 375 degrees.
Before baking, brush the tops with an egg yolk that has been beaten. Bake for ~ 50 minutes or until browned.
You may glaze with a mix of 2 1/2 tbsp. sugar and 2 tsp. rosewater. I usually do 1 tsp. rosewater and 1 tsp. orange juice.
To serve, you can cut your rolls into slices, or serve whole.
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Sources
"The Opera Of Bartolomeo Scappi (1570)". Google Books, 2022, https://www.google.com/books/edition/The_Opera_of_Bartolomeo_Scappi_1570/oF2jsqrWtEkC?hl=en&gbpv=1&bsq=twists. Accessed 5 Sept 2022.
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