Does anyone have a recipe for Italian tarallis. They are round, hard, and have fennel seeds. Sometimes called Italian pretzels.
Taralli
Dense Italian bagels, these fennel seasoned little breads boil briefly before baking. This is a very high volume recipe that is easily halved for a more manageable quantity."
.25 ounce package active dry yeast
1 1/2 cups water
1/4 cup margarine
1 1/2 tablespoons white sugar
1 tablespoon salt
1 egg
5 pounds all-purpose flour, divided
1/2 cup fennel seed
1/4 cup water (optional)
1. In a small bowl, dissolve yeast in water. Let stand for 5 minutes.
2. In a large bowl combine butter or margarine, sugar, salt, and egg. Add yeast mixture and 1/2 of the flour and mix until smooth. Stir in the remaining flour and the seeds. Mix in additional water as needed to make a stiff dough.
3. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Knead well. Place dough in a lightly oiled bowl, and turn once to coat surface. Cover with a damp cloth and place in a warm spot to rise for about 1 1/2 hours.
4. Roll dough into short ropes about 1/2 inch thick. Join ends to form donut shape. Set aside to rise for a few minutes.
5. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
6. Fill a large saucepan half full of water; bring to a boil. Drop taralli into water and boil for 1 minute. Remove from water, letting both sides dry on a sheet of waxed paper.
7. Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) on a lightly greased cookie sheet, turning a few times during baking until medium brown and crisp.
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You can find this recipe at Mary Ann Esposito's site, CiaoItalia.com.
I think that the recipe that you are looking for does not call for yeast. My grandfather is Italian, and he got his recipe from my great-grandmother straight from Italy. You can find a similar recipe on Cooks.com, but the recipe is not very clear. He is supposed to be sending me a recipe soon, when I get it, hopefully, I will remember to send along a copy to you. It is very difficult to find this recipe.
