Chef Graziella
Baci di Dama
Piedmont's famous hazelnut cookies, each one small as a walnut and twice as fragile. Two tender domes joined by a whisper of dark chocolate, named for how they resemble lips meeting in a kiss.
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Zaleti
Created by
The little yellow ones from Venice: rustic cornmeal cookies that crumble perfectly, scented with grappa-soaked raisins and the barest whisper of lemon. Peasant baking at its most honest.
Pastries & Cookies
Italian, Venetian
Comfort Food
30 min
Active Time
18 min cook•50 min total
Yield36 cookies
Zaleti means 'little yellow ones' in the Venetian dialect, and that tells you everything you need to know. These are golden cookies, colored by the cornmeal that defines them, shaped roughly by hand and eaten without ceremony. They are the opposite of precious.
The cornmeal must be fine, what Italians call fioretto. Coarse polenta grinds belong in soup, not in cookies. The texture you want is slightly sandy on the tongue, yielding to a tender crumb that almost dissolves. The raisins must be soaked in grappa. I have seen recipes calling for water or orange juice. These miss the point entirely. The grappa perfumes each cookie with something distinctly Venetian, a warmth that lingers after the last bite.
These are not difficult cookies, but they require attention to texture. The dough should be soft, pliable, holding its shape without crumbling. Too dry and the cookies will be hard. Too wet and they spread into shapeless puddles. Trust your hands. They will tell you when the dough is right.
Zaleti have been baked in Venice and the surrounding Veneto region since at least the 18th century, when cornmeal became a staple of the Venetian diet. Originally made by farmwives using the same polenta flour that fed the family, these cookies traveled from countryside kitchens to the pasticcerie of Venice, where they remain a beloved tradition during Carnevale and throughout the year.
The technique, the tradition, and the story behind every dish.
Discover Culinary ExplorerIngredients
golden raisins
Quantity
3/4 cup
grappa
Quantity
3 tablespoons
fine yellow cornmeal
Quantity
1 cup
all-purpose flour
Quantity
1 cup
granulated sugar
Quantity
1/2 cup
baking powder
Quantity
1 teaspoon
fine sea salt
Quantity
1/4 teaspoon
unsalted butter
Quantity
8 tablespoons
softened
large egg yolks
Quantity
2
pure vanilla extract
Quantity
1 teaspoon
lemon
Quantity
1
finely grated zest
whole milk
Quantity
3 tablespoons
powdered sugar (optional)
Quantity
for dusting
| Ingredient | Quantity |
|---|---|
| golden raisins | 3/4 cup |
| grappa | 3 tablespoons |
| fine yellow cornmeal | 1 cup |
| all-purpose flour | 1 cup |
| granulated sugar | 1/2 cup |
| baking powder | 1 teaspoon |
| fine sea salt | 1/4 teaspoon |
| unsalted buttersoftened | 8 tablespoons |
| large egg yolks | 2 |
| pure vanilla extract | 1 teaspoon |
| lemonfinely grated zest | 1 |
| whole milk | 3 tablespoons |
| powdered sugar (optional) | for dusting |
Equipment Needed
- •Large mixing bowl
- •Wooden spoon
- •Parchment-lined baking sheets
- •Wire cooling rack
Instructions
- 1
Soak the raisins
Place the raisins in a small bowl and pour the grappa over them. Let them soak for at least 30 minutes, or up to overnight. The raisins should plump and absorb the spirit. Do not skip this step, and do not substitute water. The grappa perfumes the cookies in a way nothing else can.
If you cannot find grappa, use a good dark rum or vin santo. Water-soaked raisins produce a completely different cookie, one not worth making. - 2
Mix the dry ingredients
In a medium bowl, whisk together the cornmeal, flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. The cornmeal should be finely ground, what Italians call fioretto. Coarse polenta will produce a gritty cookie. Run your fingers through the mixture. It should feel like fine sand, not gravel.
- 3
Cream the butter
In a large bowl, work the softened butter with a wooden spoon until it is completely smooth and pale, about 2 minutes by hand. Add the egg yolks one at a time, beating after each addition until incorporated. The mixture should be light and creamy. Add the vanilla and lemon zest and stir to combine.
- 4
Form the dough
Add the dry ingredients to the butter mixture in two additions, stirring with the wooden spoon. The dough will be crumbly at first. Add the milk and continue to mix. Drain the raisins, reserving any remaining grappa, and fold them into the dough. If the dough seems too dry to hold together, add the reserved grappa by the teaspoon. The dough should be soft but not sticky, holding its shape when pressed.
Do not overwork the dough. Cornmeal doughs become dense when handled too aggressively. Mix only until the raisins are distributed throughout. - 5
Shape the cookies
Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface. Divide it in half. Roll each half into a log about 12 inches long. With floured hands, flatten each log slightly and cut on the diagonal into diamond shapes, about 2 inches long. The shapes need not be perfect. These are rustic cookies from the Venetian countryside, not Parisian petits fours. Transfer to parchment-lined baking sheets, spacing them one inch apart.
- 6
Chill the dough
Refrigerate the shaped cookies for 20 minutes. This firms the butter and helps the cookies hold their shape during baking. While they chill, preheat your oven to 350°F. Position the racks in the upper and lower thirds.
- 7
Bake until golden
Bake the cookies for 16 to 18 minutes, rotating the pans halfway through. They are done when the edges turn deep golden and the tops are pale gold with a few darker spots. The centers will seem slightly soft. This is correct. They firm as they cool. Remove from the oven and let rest on the pans for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack.
- 8
Finish and store
When completely cool, dust lightly with powdered sugar if you wish. Store in an airtight container at room temperature. Zaleti keep beautifully for one week, though in my experience they rarely last that long. The texture improves slightly on the second day as the cornmeal continues to soften.
Chef Tips
- •Seek out finely ground cornmeal, sometimes labeled 'fioretto' or 'fine polenta.' The coarse-ground cornmeal sold for making polenta creates an unpleasantly gritty cookie.
- •The traditional shape is a rough diamond, cut on the bias from a flattened log. Do not fuss over uniformity. Irregular shapes are part of their charm.
- •Grappa is traditional, but a good aged rum or vin santo works beautifully. What matters is that the raisins absorb enough spirit to perfume the dough.
- •Some Venetian bakers add pine nuts. This is a worthy variation. Toast them lightly before adding to the dough.
Advance Preparation
- •The raisins can soak in grappa overnight at room temperature. Longer soaking produces more flavorful cookies.
- •Shaped cookies can be refrigerated overnight before baking. Add 1-2 minutes to the baking time.
- •Baked zaleti keep for one week in an airtight container. Do not refrigerate; cold dries out cornmeal cookies.
Frequently Asked Questions
Nutrition Information
1 serving (about 20g)
Calories
80 calories
Total Fat
3 g
Saturated Fat
2 g
Trans Fat
0 g
Unsaturated Fat
1 g
Cholesterol
17 mg
Sodium
30 mg
Total Carbohydrates
12 g
Dietary Fiber
0 g
Sugars
5 g
Protein
1 g
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