SWEET DEEP-FRIED PASTRY

Alchermes, a Florentine liqueur, lends the pastry a slightly spiced perfume but you could substitute it for rum, vin santo or grappa.

Preparation 25 minutes, plus resting Cooking about 10 minutes Makes about 25

240G PLAIN FLOUR

1 TBSP CASTER SUGAR

1½ TBSP OLIVE OIL, PLUS EXTRA FOR DEEP-FRYING 2 MEDIUM EGGS, BEATEN

1 TBSP ALCHERMES

ZEST OF 1 LEMON

ICING SUGAR, FOR DUSTING

1 Sift the flour, sugar and a pinch of salt into a bowl. Make a well in the centre and add 1½ tbsp oil, the eggs, Alchermes and lemon zest and beat with a fork, starting from the centre and moving out. Finish with your hands to make a compact ball of dough. Wrap it in clingfilm and leave to rest for at least 30 minutes.

2 Roll out the dough on a lightly floured worksurface to a 2-3mm thickness. With a frilled-edge pastry cutter, cut strips of dough about 2.5cm x 10cm in size.

3 Heat enough oil in a saucepan so that the dough will float. If you have a sugar thermometer, use it to determine when the oil reaches 150°C. The dough needs to fry evenly, not too fast and not too slow. You can test with small pieces of leftover pastry dough – the oil is ready to use when it starts to bubble immediately, surrounding the dough entirely with tiny bubbles.

4 Deep-fry the pastry in batches, twisting or knotting them as you carefully drop them in the hot oil. Cook for about 20-30 seconds per side until a golden caramel colour. Remove with a slotted spoon and leave to drain on kitchen paper. They should not be oily or greasy, but crisp and dry. Dust with plenty of icing sugar and serve warm or cold, with a small glass of vin santo.