Experience a piece of Venice in the comfort of your home with these Venetian cornmeal cookies, locally known as ‘Zaleti.’ Excellent with coffee or tea; you will surely keep reaching for another piece!
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A traditional Italian cookie from the north, these bright yellow cookies are hard to miss when you’re in Venice.
Zaleti means yellow in the local dialect, and this treat got the same name for their color — because of the addition of cornmeal in the dough.
These Venetian cornmeal cookies are softer than your typical cantucci but undoubtedly delicious and addictive in their own way.
IF YOU WANT MORE AUTHENTIC ITALIAN COOKIES, THEN YOU WILL LIKE THESE POSTS!
Ingredients
- Cornmeal – I used the same kind that I use for making polenta.
- Flour – all-purpose flour is all you need for making these cornmeal cookies.
- Raisins – use your favorite brand.
- Milk – full cream milk, if possible.
- Butter – unsalted and softened.
- Eggs – medium-sized eggs (about 63 to 73 grams each), and you would only be using the yolks for this cookie recipe.
- Vanilla extract – an intensely flavored extract would be excellent.
- Sugar – regular white sugar will work exceptionally well for this zaleti recipe.
- Lemon – you would only be using the skin for the grated zest.
- Baking powder – whatever brand you have available would be fine.
- Salt – use less or skip it altogether if you are using salted butter.
Preparation
Start by combining softened butter and sugar in a large mixing bowl. Mix until you get a creamy consistency.
Add the egg yolks and continue mixing (photo 1).
Add milk, vanilla extract, lemon zest, baking powder, and salt, then mix until thoroughly combined.
Add raisins and mix with a rubber spatula or wooden spoon.
Add flour and cornmeal (photo 2).
Continue mixing with a spatula or wooden spoon until a dough starts to form.
Transfer it on top of a flat surface and use your hands to form a ball (or disc) of dough (photo 3).
Wrap with plastic and place in the refrigerator to chill for at least thirty minutes.
Preheat your oven to 180°C (350°F).
Unwrap the dough and divide it into four equal portions (photo 4).
Start forming your zaleti by rolling each portion into a 9-inch log, then use your hands to flatten the top into a width of 2-inches.
Cut into diagonal cookie shapes of about 1 & 1/2 inches each (photo 5).
Place each cookie on top of a baking tray lined with a baking sheet, keeping at least an inch of space between (photo 6).
Place the tray of zaleti in the oven for about fifteen minutes or when their edges are slightly darker.
Set aside to cool.
Serve your Italian cornmeal cookies with a dusting of powdered sugar, if desired.
Helpful tips
- Don’t forget to add the raisins before the flour and cornmeal. It helps soften the raisins instead of soaking them in water for a few minutes before combining them with the cookie dough.
- You can skip the chilling of the dough if you think it’s not that difficult to handle. Conversely, if you think it’s still too soft for you to cut the zaleti cookies, put them back in the refrigerator to chill.
- You can cut the cornmeal cookies into round shapes if you want. Although traditionally, they are cut into diagonal (diamond) shapes.
Recipe variation
- Feel free to use currants instead of raisins, if that’s what you prefer.
- Soaking the raisins in liquor (like grappa or rum) is quite common as well. You then drain the raisins before combining them with the rest of the ingredients.
FAQs
Absolutely.
You can prepare the zaleti cookie dough earlier and place them in the refrigerator. I have done this up to two days in advance, and I had no problem with the result.
Just make sure that you allow enough time for the dough to soften a bit once you take it out of the refrigerator.
Keep them in an airtight container, and these cookies will be good for about two weeks.
So, give this zaleti recipe a try this weekend, and let me know in the comment section below! 🙂
Zaleti Recipe (Venetian Cornmeal Cookies)
Equipment
- Mixing Bowls
- Pyrex Measuring Cups
- Measuring Spoons
- Rubber Spatula
Ingredients
- 1 stick butter (113 grams), unsalted & softened
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 3 medium egg yolks
- 4 tbsp milk
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 lemon, grated zest
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/2 cup raisins
- 1 & 1/2 cup flour
- 1 cup cornmeal
- powdered sugar, for dusting (optional)
Instructions
Preparing Venetian cornmeal cookie dough:
- Using a large mixing bowl, combine softened butter and sugar; and mix until it becomes creamy.
- Add the egg yolks and continue mixing.
- Add milk, vanilla extract, lemon zest, baking powder, and salt, then mix until thoroughly combined.
- Add raisins and mix with a rubber spatula or wooden spoon.
- Add flour and cornmeal and continue mixing with a spatula or wooden spoon until you start to form a dough.
- Transfer it on top of a flat surface and use your hands to form a ball (or disc) of dough.
- Wrap dough with plastic and place it in the refrigerator to chill for at least 30 minutes.
Preparing & baking zaleti:
- Preheat your oven to 180°C (350°F).
- Unwrap the dough and divide it into four equal portions.
- Start forming the zaleti by rolling each portion into a 9-inch log, then use your hands to flatten the top into a width of 2-inches.
- Cut into diagonal cookie shapes of about 1 & 1/2 inches each.
- Place each cookie on top of a baking tray lined with a baking sheet, keeping at least an inch of space between each cookie.
- Place the tray of zaleti in the oven for about 15 minutes or when their edges are slightly darker.
- Set aside to cool.
- Serve your Venetian cornmeal cookies with a dusting of powdered sugar, if preferred.
Notes
- Cook’s Tip #1: Don’t forget to add the raisins before the flour and cornmeal. It helps soften the raisins instead of soaking them in water for a few minutes before combining them with the cookie dough.
- Cook’s Tip #2: You can skip the chilling of the dough if you think it’s not that difficult to handle. Conversely, if you think it’s still too soft for you to cut the cookies, put them back in the refrigerator to chill.
- Cook’s Tip #3: You can cut the cornmeal cookies into a circle if you want. Although traditionally, zaleti cookies are cut into diagonal (diamond) shapes.
- Recipe Variation #1: Currants can be used instead of raisins.
- Recipe Variation #2: Soaking the raisins in liquor (like grappa or rum) is quite common. Make sure you drain the raisins before combining them with the rest of the ingredients.
akashocd says
this recipe is so finger licking good and i liked it very much