Apulian christmas dessert

There cannot be in Apulia, Italy, Christmas without the "cartellate" sweets. Its preparation has become a ritual involving the whole family. It´s almost the main decoration all-around during the Christmas festivities.

The "cartellate" has not an easy recipe, so better enjoy the ones we can afford from the local shops and "caffeterie". However, the ingredients are simple: flour, sugar, honey...but once prepared the dessert dough, this must be transformed in fine leafs, then strips and finally folding them to reach the final form of a rose bathed with honey or "vincotto", white sweet Apulian wine reduced in the cooker. 

It looks like the "cartellate" where already present in the life of the first pre christian Apulian people as an offer to the Gods, and then transformed into offer to the "Madonna" to protect the harvest. Nowadays the "cartellate" also represent the cloths in which the baby Jesus was wrapped or even the thorn crown of crucifixion. For others, the name of "cartellate" is related to traditional  Apulian words with describe the form of this dessert like "incartocciare" ("incartellare") related the its form.

Would you like trying some "cartellate"? No doubt, my favorite place in Monopoli is Piazza di Spagna Cafè.