Calcionetti

Traditional recipe from Abruzzo.
makes 20

dough
2 cups all-purpose flour
½ cup powdered sugar
pinch of salt
2 tablespoons vegetable shortening
2 eggs
½ teaspoon lemon zest
filling
½ cup chick peas, cooked (or chestnuts)
¼ cup brown sugar
2 tablespoons honey
2 tablespoons grated chocolate
½ cup finely chopped walnuts
vegetable oil, to fry
¼ cup milk, to seal dough
powdered sugar to dust cookies

Preheat vegetable oil to 360F. Make dough: sift flour, sugar and salt together. Mix in shortening using hands or pastry cutter until crumbly. Add eggs and lemon zest. Mix until just incorporated. Roll out half the dough to ⅛-inch thickness and forming a long rectangular shape (roughly 15 inches by 3 inches), be careful not to overwork dough. Repeat with other half of dough and set aside. Make filling: use a fork to mash chickpeas thoroughly. Stir in brown sugar, honey, grated chocolate, and chopped walnuts. Drop heaping teaspoonfuls of filling along length of rectangular dough (leaving 1-inch between spoonfuls) keeping to one side. This should be enough room for about 10 spoonfuls. With pastry brush use milk to moisten area around each filling spoonful. Fold dough lengthwise over filling and press down to remove any air and to seal edges. With a fluted pastry cutter or pizza cutter, cut into squares to form individual cookies. Repeat procedure with remaining filling and dough. Fry cookies in hot vegetable oil until golden brown. Remove and place on paper towels to drain excess oil. Dust with powdered sugar. Best served the same day.