Gaznates de Etla

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Tin canutos, stainless steel cannoli forms, or foil-wrapped cardboard tubes about 4 inches long
• •Heavy pot or clay cazuela for frying
• •Candy thermometer and frying thermometer
• •Stand mixer with whisk attachment
• •Piping bag with a 1/2-inch round tip
• •Wire cooling rack

Instructions

1. 1

   Build the dough

   Whisk the flour and salt together in a wide bowl. Rub the lard into the flour with your fingertips until the mixture looks like coarse meal. Make a well in the center and add the egg yolks and the mezcal. Stir with a fork, drawing the flour into the wet ingredients. Add the cold water a tablespoon at a time, only as much as you need to bring the dough together. The dough should be firm and slightly stiff, never sticky. Wet dough fries soft and you want a gaznate that holds its shape.

2. 2

   Knead and rest

   Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead for eight to ten minutes. Real kneading. The dough goes from rough to smooth and elastic, the way pasta dough does. The mezcal cuts the gluten and gives the fried pastry that signature crackle. Wrap the dough tightly in plastic and rest for 30 minutes at room temperature. Resting is not optional. Skip it and the dough will spring back when you try to roll it.

   The mezcal is not for show. It tenderizes the dough and evaporates in the fryer, leaving a clean, blistered shell. Aguardiente de cana works the same way. Vodka is a compromise, not an upgrade.
3. 3

   Prepare the canutos

   You need metal tubes about 4 inches long and 3/4 inch in diameter to wrap the dough around. The dulceras of Etla use small tin canutos passed down through generations. At home, cut clean 4-inch lengths from the cardboard core of a roll of foil and wrap each tightly in two layers of aluminum foil, or use stainless steel cannoli forms. Lightly grease the outside of each tube with lard.

4. 4

   Roll the dough thin

   Divide the rested dough in half. Keep one half wrapped while you work the other. On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough as thin as you can manage without tearing it, about the thickness of a thick sheet of paper. The senoras at the dulceria stalls in Etla roll it until you can almost see the wood of the table through it. Cut into rectangles roughly 4 by 5 inches.

5. 5

   Wrap the canutos

   Wrap each rectangle around a greased tube on the diagonal, overlapping the dough slightly along the seam. Press the seam firmly with a wet fingertip to seal. The dough must close cleanly or the gaznate will unravel in the fryer. Set the wrapped tubes seam side down on a tray as you work. Repeat with the remaining dough.

6. 6

   Fry the gaznates

   Heat the lard in a heavy pot or cazuela to 350F (175C). Use a thermometer. Lard fries cleaner and crisper than oil and the flavor is correct for Oaxaca, but neutral oil will work if you must. La manteca es el sabor. Lower three or four wrapped tubes into the fat, seam side down first. Fry for 2 to 3 minutes, turning gently, until the dough is pale golden and blistered all over. Lift out with tongs and drain on a wire rack. While each one is still hot, slide the tube out by gripping it with a folded kitchen towel. The shell will be hollow, crackled, and rigid. Cool completely before filling.

   If the dough darkens fast, your lard is too hot. The gaznate should fry pale, not brown. A dark gaznate is a bitter gaznate.
7. 7

   Cook the sugar syrup

   Combine the sugar and water in a small heavy saucepan. Stir once to wet the sugar, then leave it alone. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat and cook without stirring until the syrup reaches the soft-ball stage, 240F (115C) on a candy thermometer. This takes about 7 to 9 minutes. Do not walk away. Sugar burns in the time it takes you to answer a phone.

8. 8

   Whip the meringue

   While the syrup climbs the last few degrees, whip the egg whites with the cream of tartar in a clean, dry bowl on medium speed until soft peaks form. The moment the syrup hits 240F, raise the mixer to medium-high and pour the hot syrup down the inside wall of the bowl in a thin steady stream. Do not let the syrup hit the whisk or it will fling sugar threads everywhere. Once all the syrup is in, whip on high until the meringue is stiff, glossy, and the bowl is barely warm to the touch, about 7 minutes. This is merengue italiano. It must be stiff enough to hold a sharp peak. Soft meringue weeps inside the gaznate and ruins it.

9. 9

   Flavor and fill

   Fold the mezcal, vanilla, and lime zest into the finished meringue with a clean spatula. Taste. The meringue should taste sweet and faintly smoky, with a clean lift from the citrus. Transfer to a piping bag fitted with a 1/2-inch round tip. Pipe the meringue into both ends of each cooled gaznate shell until the filling meets in the middle and just kisses the opening. Wipe the rim clean. Serve within an hour. The shells go soft if they sit filled. Asi se hace y punto.

Chef Tips

• •The mezcal is the etlateco signature. Use a good espadin, not a flavored or pechuga mezcal. The smoke should be present but quiet. If you cannot find mezcal, aguardiente de cana works in the dough. Do not use rum. Rum is sweet and the dough does not want more sugar.
• •Fry in lard if you can find it. Neutral oil is a compromise. The dulceras at Etla fry in lard because the flavor is correct and because the shells stay crisp longer. La manteca es el sabor.
• •Gaznates must be filled close to serving. The meringue weeps slowly into the dough and the crackle disappears within a few hours. If you are making them for a fiesta, fry the shells in the morning, whip the meringue in the afternoon, fill them an hour before guests arrive. No me vengas con atajos.

Advance Preparation

• •The fried, unfilled shells can be made one day ahead and stored in an airtight tin at room temperature. Do not refrigerate. Refrigeration draws moisture into the shell and softens it.
• •The Italian meringue can be whipped up to four hours ahead and held at room temperature, covered tightly with plastic pressed to the surface. Do not refrigerate the meringue.
• •Once filled, eat within one hour. Filled gaznates do not keep.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 32g)