Zeppole are tiny Italian doughnuts - crisp, light and incredibly fluffy. This version is made using a pate choux dough, which when fried, become so airy, tender and golden brown.
The wonders of pate a choux dough never ceases to amaze me. There are so many wonderful things you can make out of it - cream puffs, eclairs, pastries, cake and even dumplings in soup. You can even deep fry it to make the most tender doughnuts.
The results are really crisp and light and one of the fluffiest doughnuts I had ever tried. It's like biting into a delicious, creamy cloud. It's also so easy and quick to prepare the batter, since you don't have to wait for the yeast dough to rise, like you would for yeast doughnuts.
What Are Zeppoles?
Zeppole are Italian doughnuts. They are made from pate choux dough, the same one used for cream puffs and eclairs, made from cooking water/milk with butter and flour and then beating in eggs.
The dough is then fried. The little balls cook up golden, crisp and really tender. They are really airy and tender. With some powdered sugar, these little doughnuts are such a delicious treat.
Zeppoli vs Beignets and Doughnuts
Although all of these are fried pastries, zeppoli are made with a pate choux dough, like I mentioned earlier, and beignets are made with a yeast dough, while doughnuts are made with either a yeast dough or a cake batter dough.
Making the Zeppole Batter
In a medium saucepan, combine the water, butter, sugar and salt. Cook until the butter completely melts. Add the flour all at once and mix vigorously, keeping the heat low, until it's all incorporated and the dough comes together in a ball.
Turn off the heat and wait until the dough has cooled off before adding the eggs, one at a time. It is important to wait until the dough is only warm, otherwise the eggs will scramble when added to the dough.
Also add the eggs one at a time, so that they will be evenly mixed into the batter. You can use a wooden spoon or a mixer to add the eggs.
Can Pate Choux Dough Be Made In Advance?
Yes. You can keep the pate choux dough refrigerated for up to 3 days.
What Oil Is Best For Frying
The best oils for frying are high smoke point oils, like grape seed, avocado, vegetable, and peanut oils. Don't use low smoke point oils, like olive oil. This means that the oil will start to smoke at a lower temperature and the dough will start to burn before it's cooked through properly.
Keep the temperature above 350 at all times, preferably 360-375 degrees. If the temperature of the oil drops too much, the doughnuts will soak in too much oil and taste greasy.
Use a thermometer to monitor the temperature of the oil as you preheat it and then are frying the zeppole. You can use a candy thermometer or an infrared thermometer.
Cooking the Zeppole
Pour in enough oil into a large, heavy pot (I use my Dutch oven). You should have at least 2 inches of oil, I usually use one full container of oil. Heat up the oil to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.
You can use two small spoons to drop bits of dough into the hot oil, or place the dough in a large pastry bag, cut a hole off one corner and pipe out the batter, cutting off snippets of dough into the hot oil. Be careful not to splash yourself with it though.
Fry the zeppole for about 5 minutes, turning over the ones that don't turn themselves over. Take them out of the oil using a slotted spoon and place them on a paper towel lined plate, baking sheet, etc. When you're done frying all the zeppole, dust them with powdered sugar.
Storing Zeppole
Store the zeppole at room temperature, covered with a clean kitchen towel or plastic wrap. They are best served right away but will keep for a few days too, they just won't taste as tender and fresh.
Zeppole - Italian Doughnuts
Zeppole are tiny Italian doughnuts - crisp, light and incredibly fluffy. This version is made using a pate choux dough, which when fried, become so airy, tender and golden brown.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 25 minutes
- Total Time: 45 minutes
- Yield: 4 1x
- Category: Dessert
Ingredients
- 1 cup water
- 8 Tablespoons butter (½ cup)
- 3 Tablespoons sugar
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup flour
- 4 eggs
- oil (for frying (vegetable, canola or peanut oil))
- powdered sugar (to dust the zeppole)
Instructions
- In a medium saucepan, combine the water, butter, sugar and salt. Cook until the butter completely melts.
- Add the flour all at once and mix vigorously with a wooden spoon, until the dough comes together in a ball. Continue cooking for a minute or two.
- Place the dough in the bowl of a standing mixer. Mix with a paddle attachment, until you don't see any more steam rising up from the bowl.
- Add the eggs, one at a time, until they are fully incorporated. You can also use a hand held mixer, or even mix up the dough by hand.
- Meanwhile, pour in enough oil into a large, heavy pot (I use my Dutch oven). You should have at least 2 inches of oil, I usually use one full container of oil. Heat up the oil to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Transfer the dough to a large ziptop bag. Cut a hole in one corner. Slowly pipe out the dough and cut off snippets of the dough right into the oil. Be careful not to splash yourself. You can also use 2 small spoons to drop bits of dough into the oil, or use a small portion scoop.
- Keep the temperature above 350 at all times, preferably 360-375 degrees.
- Fry the zeppole about 5 minutes, turning over the ones that don't turn themselves over.
- Take them out of the oil using a slotted spoon and place them on a paper towel lined plate, baking sheet, etc. When you're done frying all the zeppole, dust them with powdered sugar.
I DO LIVE IN A HIGHER ALTITUDE, DO YOU THINK THAT'S WHY IT WAS SO RUNNY??
PATRICIA RAUCH
HI OLGA,
I HAD A PROBLEM, NOT SURE WHY.. THE BATTER WAS SO RUNNY, I HAD TO ADD ANOTHER CUP OF FLOUR !!
WHAT DO YOU THINK HAPPENED? PAT
Hi Patricia.
I am not sure why your batter was too runny. I don't have any experience cooking at high altitude, but I do know that different altitudes affect cooking. I'm sorry it didn't work out for you.
Olga, i had the same issue like others here.. my batter was too runny.
Maybe you use pigeon eggs? 😁
I used regular large store bought hen eggs. If your mixture is too wet, you can add one less egg. I also suggest making them on the smaller side. They puff up quite a bit and it doesn't matter as much if the batter is looser if you pipe them out small.
Much easier than yeast based recipes. And the results are phenomenal! Creamy, fluffy, and delectable.
That's great, Susan! I'm so glad you enjoyed it. Thank you for taking the time to write.
What thermometer do you use to check the oil?
can the mix be made the night before and put in fridge until next day?
I have never tried it, Angela.
Followed the exact recipe but the consistency was so so runny, like some of the previous comments..... I had to increase the flour to 3 cups (instead of your stated 1 cup) in order to make the dough consistency appear like your photos. They tasted good after I adjusted the recipe however.
I'm sorry to hear the recipe didn't work out for you, Adriana. I share the recipe exactly how I make it and I'm sorry that you didn't get the same results.
hello, can you make dough ahead of time?
Yes, you can make it in advance and keep it refrigerated until you are ready to use it, Angela.
OMG soooooo good and so easy to make.
My kids just love them they can’t stop eating them! Will definitely do another batch anytime soon... thank you for the recipe 😍
We make these every year for St.Joseph celebration March 19th, along with a vegetarian meal and St>Joseph's bread.We call them Sphingee(Italian style doughnut)very similar to a Crueller doughnut.
Can i put less eggs? The consistency is right but they tasted too much like eggs for my taste. They were easy to make.
I'm not sure if they would turn out correctly, Irma. I've only used the recipe that I shared and didn't try using less eggs.
Agrees. Very eggy flavor. Just made them and they gross me out. Just tastes like egg and oil. Put more sugar and cinnamon on them to try and cover it but not a fan. My husband likes them though so it must just be a taste preference thing.
I'm sorry you didn't enjoy them, Jamie. I agree that they can taste "eggy", since the dough is a pate choux pastry dough, which has a lot of eggs. I hope you find a recipe for Zeppoles that you will be happy with.
Hey Olga,
We tried this recipe this afternoon. We used all the proportions you mentioned but our zeppoles had a lot of bubbles on them. Could you tell us why?
This is a pate a choux pastry dough, just like puff pastry and it is normal for it to puff up and have holes in the center. That is what it is supposed to be like, Aparna. If you are looking for a doughnut that has a cake like consistency, I have another recipe that you can try, they are called Russian Ponchiki.
Hi - Can i make the dough ahead of time (1 day, refrigerated), and then fry later? Thanks!
I've never tried it myself, Amy, so I can't say for sure. It would probably work.
Flavour is nice. I think oil heat too high and will burn doughnuts first before cooking inside. Maybe try high heat for crispy outside then lower for 5 to 8mins on each side.
Can anyone tell me why while frying they were nice and fluffy and as soon as I took them out I can squeeze them to where there was barely any dough inside. I feel like there's something missing.. weird , I followed step by step.
I squeeze then and are super thin, there's like a very thin layer of dough. 🙁
Can anyone tell me why while frying they were nice and fluffy and as soon as I took them out I can squeeze them to where there was barely any dough inside. I feel like there's something missing.. weird , I followed step by step.
Will it work if I make the dough a day or two in advance and then cook the dough? Have you ever tried that?
No, I've never tried it, JoAnn. It's hard for me to advise about something I don't have personal experience with.