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1
Place the flour, sugar, baking powder, and finely grated lemon zest in a large bowl. Rub in the lard until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs, so the fat is distributed in small pockets throughout the flour rather than worked into a solid mass that would tighten the dough. Add the eggs one at a time, working each in fully before the next, then add the milk in small additions, kneading until the dough comes together into a smooth, pliable mass — it is ready when it is soft enough to shape without cracking but firm enough to hold a defined form.
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2
Divide the dough and roll into thick ropes, then form each rope into a ring — the Bari standard — closing the join firmly so the seam will not open and gape during baking. Alternatively, form doves, baskets, or other traditional symbols. The dough must be stiff enough to hold the shaped form through baking; if it slackens, the decoration and the egg will not stay in place and the scarcella loses both its structure and its meaning.
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3
Nestle one whole raw egg — unbroken, in its shell — into the surface of each shaped scarcella, pressing it in firmly so it is gripped by the dough on at least two sides, because an egg that sits loosely on the surface will roll free and crack before the dough has set around it. It must not be able to move. Set the scarcelle on a lined baking tray.
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4
Bake at 170 °C for 20–25 minutes; the scarcelle are done when the dough is golden across the surface and the shell of the baked-in egg has taken on a faint toasted colour. The egg inside will have cooked fully through the heat of baking. Remove from the oven and cool completely on a rack before proceeding, so the icing does not meet any residual warmth that would cause it to slide and pool rather than set in an even coat.
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5
Beat the sifted icing sugar with the egg white and lemon juice to a thick, opaque royal icing, sifting the sugar first so no lumps break the smooth surface of the finished coat. The icing is correct when a ribbon dropped from the spoon holds its shape on the surface for several seconds before dissolving — thin icing is a fault, as the coating must be dense and white, not translucent.
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6
Spoon the royal icing thickly over each cooled scarcella, then immediately — before a skin forms — press the coloured sugar confetti into the wet icing, since royal icing begins to crust within minutes and confetti pressed onto a set surface will not bond and will shed when the biscuit is handled. Allow 30–60 minutes for the icing to harden completely before handling or wrapping as a gift.