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Neapolitan Graffe are delicious and inviting small pastries typical of Italian culinary tradition, mainly made during Carnival season. Originally from Naples, these fried donuts evoke childhood memories in the collective imagination: grandmothers used to delight us with these fried rings that would disappear from the table in minutes!
Their dough is made with flour and boiled potatoes, although there are several recipes for Graffe without potatoes. Follow our recipe carefully to obtain soft, tasty, and simply delicious Neapolitan Graffe: the secret to perfect graffe lies entirely in the rising time, which must be strictly respected if you don’t want to compromise the final result. You’ll need to let the graffe rise for 2-3 hours for optimal results. A coating of granulated sugar is the final touch that makes these guilty pleasures truly irresistible and exquisite.
If you’re wondering about why they’re called Graffe, Wikipedia helps us understand that it’s essentially an Italianization of the term Krapfen (although the two pastries are different from each other).
Ingredients
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Instructions
To make Graffe (traditional Neapolitan potato doughnuts), start by washing the potatoes under running water and then boil them.
To prepare the pre-ferment (poolish), place the sifted flour in a bowl and add the fresh yeast, gradually pouring in the lukewarm milk until you obtain a smooth batter. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let it rest in the turned-off oven with only the light on for about one hour.
Once the potatoes are ready, peel them and pass them through a potato ricer into a bowl. In a stand mixer bowl, combine the two sifted flours, honey, sugar, mashed warm potatoes, lemon zest, and lightly beaten eggs.
Start the stand mixer using the paddle attachment and mix until you obtain a homogeneous mixture. When the dough comes together completely on the paddle, switch to the dough hook and add the pre-ferment. Add salt and softened butter in small pieces, waiting for each piece to be fully incorporated before adding the next.
Once you have a smooth and uniform dough, transfer it to a slightly buttered surface and shape it into a ball. Place it in a bowl covered with plastic wrap and let it rise in the turned-off oven with the light on for two hours.
After the rising time, shape the dough into a cylinder on a buttered work surface and divide it into portions of about 60 grams each. Shape each portion into a ball, slightly flatten it with your fingertips, and make a hole in the center, gently widening it with your fingers.
Repeat this process for all portions of dough (you should get about twenty doughnuts). Place them on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, cover with plastic wrap, and let them rise in the turned-off oven with the light on for about an hour.
When the graffe have doubled in size, the proofing is complete. Start heating the frying oil and cut the parchment paper under each doughnut to make it easier to transfer them to the fryer without losing their shape.
When the oil starts boiling (you can use a kitchen thermometer and wait until it reaches 180°C (356°F)), fry one doughnut at a time, turning it over to ensure even golden browning. Once ready, remove them with a slotted spoon and place them on a tray lined with kitchen paper to absorb excess oil.
Pour granulated sugar in a bowl and roll the still-warm fried doughnuts one at a time until they are well coated with sugar. Your graffe are now ready to be served immediately while still warm.