Italian Sfogliatella Riccia

A shell-shaped pastry that shatters with a loud crunch to reveal a smooth ricotta and candied fruit filling. The crust is golden, marked by hundreds of thin, crispy ridges.

• Prep time: 120 min
• Cook time: 30 min
• Difficulty: Hard
• Calories: 756
• Protein: 15 g
• Carbs: 97 g
• Fat: 33 g

Ingredients

• 166.7 g Wheat flour ( sifted )
• 166.7 g Durum wheat semolina ( fine )
• 0.7 tbsp Honey
• 133.3 ml Mineral water
• 100 g Lard ( room temperature )
• 166.7 ml Whole milk
• 100 g White sugar
• 0.7 piece Egg ( whole )
• 33.3 g Candied fruit ( finely chopped )
• 0.7 tsp Cinnamon ground
• 0.7 tsp Vanilla extract
• 0.7 pinch Gray sea salt
• 166.7 g Ricotta Cheese ( drained )

Instructions

1. Dough preparation

   Mix the wheat flour, durum wheat semolina, honey, grey sea salt, and mineral water. Knead vigorously until the dough is very firm and elastic. It should not stick to your fingers.

2. Extreme rolling

   Pass the dough through a pasta machine repeatedly to obtain a strip several meters long, thin as silk paper. You should be able to see the work surface through the dough.

3. Greasing and rolling

   Spread the softened lard over the entire surface of the strip. Roll the dough very tightly onto itself to form a compact cylinder. The lard is key: it separates the layers during baking.

4. Cold rest

   Wrap the cylinder in a cloth and let it rest in the fridge for at least 2 hours. The fat must solidify to allow a clean cut without crushing the layers.

5. Cooking the semolina

   Bring the whole milk to a boil with a pinch of salt. Rain in the semolina and cook until the mixture thickens and pulls away from the pan. Let cool completely.

6. Finalizing the filling

   Mix the cold semolina with the ricotta, white sugar, egg, ground cinnamon, vanilla extract, and finely chopped candied fruits. The filling should be homogeneous and dense.

7. Shaping and baking

   Cut the cylinder into one-centimeter slices. Push the center with your thumbs to form a cone. Fill generously. Bake at 200°C until the layers fan out and become golden and brittle.

Chef's tips

• Lard is essential; do not replace it with butter if you want that typical crunch.
• If the dough tears in the pasta machine, it lacks rest or hydration.
• The cylinder must be rolled as tightly as possible to avoid air bubbles between layers.

Storage

Store in an airtight container at room temperature for 2 days. Reheat for 5 minutes in the oven to restore the crunch.