Prep. time: 10 minutes
Rising time: 2 hours
Cooking time: a few seconds per frying batch

In Genoa and Turin they call these bugie (“lies”). In Florence they are cenci (rags), in Tuscany strufoli, in Basilicata, Milan,Sicily, Puglia and Parma they are chiacchiere (“chats”), in Rome Viterbo, Perugia and Ancona frappe, while in Venice, Verona and Padua they are known as galàni or sosole. Intrigoni in Reggio Emilia and lattughe (lettuces) in Mantova, maraviglias in Sardinia and sfrappe in Le Marche, in Romagna sfrappole: their nicknames are endless but they are the same thing: Carnival fritters (angel wings).

Their origins probably date back to frictilia, fritters made in ancient Rome to celebrate Carnival and sold in the streets

Some Italian cooks put the dough through the rollers of a pasta machine rather than rolling it out with a pin. The thinner the dough, the quicker it cooks and the less oil it absorbs. 

1. Sift the flour, then add the butter, salt, zest, granulated sugar and vanilla sugar. Rub together with your fingers.
2. Form a well in the centre and pour in the lightly beaten eggs. Mix together gradually to form a dough.
3. When the mixture is fairly smooth and still a little dry, mix in the liquor and knead briskly until the dough is smooth, soft and well-combined. It should be elastic and shouldn't stick to your fingers or your work surface. Form into a log, wrap in plastic wrap and let rest in a cool place for 2 hours. 
4. Transfer the dough to a lightly floured work surface and divide the dough into 4 equal pieces. Roll each piece out on the floured surface to a thickness of about 2 mm.
5. Using a fluted pastry wheel, cut into strips about 4 cm wide and 7-8 cm long.
6. Depending on the width of the chiacchiere, make one or two cuts in the centre.

Finishing

1. Heat the oil in a large heavy frying pan over medium heat to 375 degrees F. Working in batches, fry the pastries until they puff and become lightly golden, turning once.
2. Drain and transfer to paper towels. While still hot, dust the pastries generously with confectioners’ sugar and serve.