Venice and the Veneto. Zaleti reflect the central role of maize in Venetian and Veneto cooking — introduced to the region from America via Venice's trading networks in the 16th century, maize became the foundational grain of the Veneto, used both for polenta and, in fine-ground form, in baking.
Zaleti — from Venetian dialect 'zaleto' (little yellow thing) — are the traditional Venetian biscuit made from a mixture of fine polenta flour and 00 wheat flour, egg, butter, sugar, grappa, and plumped raisins, shaped into rough diamond or oval forms and baked until golden and slightly crunchy. The cornmeal gives them a distinctive grainy texture and golden colour that no wheat biscuit can replicate. They are eaten with Recioto di Soave (sweet white wine) or coffee.
The cornmeal gives a sandy, slightly crunchy texture and a golden, nutty flavour that wheat biscuits cannot achieve. Grappa-soaked raisins provide sweetness, moisture, and a spirited warmth. Eaten with sweet wine, the combination is classic Venetian — simple, honest, and completely satisfying.
The ratio of cornmeal to wheat flour is approximately 2:1 — enough wheat flour to bind but not enough to mask the grainy cornmeal texture. Use fine polenta flour (fioretto) rather than regular polenta — regular is too coarse and the biscuit crumbles. The raisins are soaked in grappa for 30 minutes, drained and folded in. The dough is soft but shapeable; form into rough diamond shapes about 7cm × 3cm, 1.5cm thick. Bake at 180°C for 18-20 minutes until golden. They should be firm when cooled but not hard — the cornmeal crunch is characteristic.
Brush the warm baked zaleti with melted butter and dust with icing sugar — the traditional Venetian presentation. Pine nuts added with the raisins (as in some older recipes) enrich the texture. Zaleti are better the day after baking — the grappa continues to perfume the raisins and the cornmeal settles into a more integrated texture.
Using regular polenta flour — too coarse, the biscuits fall apart. Not soaking the raisins — they stay hard and unexpectedly tart. Baking until very hard — zaleti should be crisp-tender, not rock hard. Under-baking — the cornmeal needs full cooking time to lose its raw taste.
Slow Food Editore, Veneto in Cucina; Ada Boni, La Cucina Regionale Italiana