Gillian Knows Best fritelle guide
10+ addresses for my favorite Venetian Carnevale treat
When the rest of the world is sticking to their new year’s promises of less wine and more vegetables here in Venice we are at peak weeks of eating sugar coated deep fried dough deliciousness. The first fritelle appear for Befana and then with every week as we move towards Carnevale they start to fill more and more bakery and cafe windows and glass cases.
🎭 This year Carnevale begins on February 14
Venetian frittelle are different from the smaller and denser Roman castagnole. They date back to the Renaissance and were considered the dessert of the Serenissima Republic. They had an official declaration and everything. The original original recipe had goat's milk and saffron in the dough and used lard for frying. Then the recipe evolved to an egg enriched yeast dough that was deep fried in oil and rolled in sugar. Until the fall of the Republic frittelle could only be made by one of 70 fritoleri, members of a guild, in designated places around the city. Fritoleri could only pass the skill and stand on to their children. This guild and its strict rules remained until the end of the 19th century.
Today you find fritelle stuffed with Nutella, pistachio creme and Tiramisu filling but there are only a few traditional types. (Many Venetians will argue that there is only one type, sensa gnente, with a hole pierced through the middle.)
🦁The word in Venetian is la frìtoła
Last year I tried to eat one frittella every day from a different bakery. For research purposes. This year I have had a slower start but Carnevale is about to begin and I plan on making up for lost time and repeating my project. For quality control. I will add any new discoveries on Instagram (and to your map) so make sure you are following along with me there to save yourself from a disappointing greasy dough ball.
Upgrade your subscription for the all the details on where to find my favorite frìtołe in Venice, see a painting of a fritolera threading her hot out of the oil frìtołe onto a long skewer for a nobleman, and where the headquarters of their guild was. Plus the only two places in Venice to find I Mammalucchi.