Dessert · Croatia · Zagreb

Fritule (Croatian Carnival Dough Balls) 🍩

Name: Fritule (Croatian Carnival Dough Balls)
Prep time: 16 min
Cook time: 24 min
Total time: 40 min
Yield: 2-4 servings
Cuisine: Central European
Ingredients: 250 g flour; 10 g fresh yeast (or 3.5 g instant dry); 1 egg yolk; 60 g sugar; 60 g butter, melted; 100 ml milk, lukewarm; 2 tbsp rum; Zest of 1/2 lemon; 100 g raisins (soaked in hot water, drained); Pinch of salt; Oil for frying; Powdered sugar for dusting

Zagreb's fastest winter comfort: a sticky rum-soaked raisin dough is dropped spoonful by spoonful into hot oil, where it self-assembles into golf-ball puffs with a crackling shell and tender crumb. Powdered sugar snowfall optional but mandatory in practice.

Europe Central European ⏱ 40 min Easy

Method

1

Dissolve yeast in lukewarm milk with a pinch of sugar; rest 5 minutes.
2

Mix flour, sugar, salt, egg yolk, melted butter, rum and lemon zest; add yeast milk and beat with a wooden spoon for 3-4 minutes until the dough bubbles and becomes glossy and sticky.
3

Fold in drained raisins. Cover and rest 15 minutes — no long proving needed.
4

Heat oil to 170-180°C. Test with a tiny drop: it should puff and float in seconds.
5

Dip a small teaspoon in hot oil, scoop a walnut-sized piece of dough, and slide it into the oil. Fry a few at a time, turning once, until deep golden, 2-3 minutes.
6

Drain on paper, dust thickly with powdered sugar and serve warm — the shell is at its best within the hour.

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Fritule (Croatian Carnival Dough Balls) 🍩

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