Naples, Campania
Naples' Father's Day (March 19 — Saint Joseph's feast) cream puffs: choux pastry (pasta choux) fried or baked into large rosette shapes, filled with crema pasticcera or pastry cream flavoured with lemon and vanilla, and finished with a glacé cherry and powdered sugar. The fried version (fritte) has a crisp, dark exterior with a slightly hollow interior; the baked version has a paler, drier shell. The rosette shape is created by piping the choux dough in a circle using a large star nozzle. Sold exclusively for Saint Joseph's Day — eating a zeppola at any other time is considered out of place in Naples.
Crisp fried choux; vanilla crema pasticcera richness; amarena cherry tartness; powdered sugar; the taste of San Giuseppe in Naples
{"Choux dough: butter, water, flour, eggs cooked to a paste then eggs added one at a time — the correct consistency flows slowly from a spoon","Pipe onto squares of parchment in rosette shape using large star nozzle — the parchment allows easy transfer to the oil","Fry at 165°C: lower temperature than usual for choux allows even puffing; 170°C causes the outside to set before the inside can hollow","Remove parchment from oil as the zeppola puffs free — 3–4 min per side until dark golden","Fill with crema pasticcera using a piping bag through the centre — fill generously; a miserly zeppola is a disappointment"}
{"The baked version (al forno) is lighter — pipe onto baking sheets, bake 200°C 25 min, then 160°C 10 min to dry out fully","Some Neapolitan pasticcerie fill with cherry custard or ricotta-cream — regional variations on the original vanilla cream","The amarena cherry on top is non-negotiable for the correct visual — wild cherry in syrup, not a maraschino cherry","Zeppole should be eaten the day they are made and filled; the choux softens overnight from the cream moisture"}
{"High frying temperature — the outside sets before the inside puffs; the correct hollow interior requires the slow expansion at 165°C","Under-filling — the cream should ooze slightly when the zeppola is bitten; under-filled are dry and unsatisfying","Filling when hot — the cream melts and runs; cool completely before filling","Using confectioner's cream instead of crema pasticcera — the Neapolitan tradition is crema pasticcera, thick and egg-yellow"}
La Cucina Napoletana — Jeanne Caròla Francesconi