Main Ingredients:

See below ingredients and instructions of the recipe

Cooking Preparation of the Recipe:

--------------------------FILLING-------------------------------
2 c Dried figs
1/4 c Yellow raisins
1/4 c Currants or dark raisins
1/4 c Candied orange peel
1/4 c Toasted, sliced almonds
1/4 c Toasted pine nuts
2 oz Bittersweet chocolate
- chopped
1/3 c Apricot preserves
1/4 c Dark rum
1 ts Instant espresso coffee
1/2 ts Cinnamon
1/4 ts Ground cloves

---------------------------DOUGH--------------------------------
3 1/3 c Flour
1 c Sugar
1 ts Baking powder
12 tb Lard or butter
2 Eggs
1/3 c Milk

------------------EGG WASH FOR ASSEMBLING-----------------------
1 Egg
1 pn Salt
Confectioners' sugar

The name of these filled pastries is Cucidati, which is Sicilian for
Buccellati, or "little bracelets." FOR THE FILLING: Stem the figs and
quarter them. Place in a bowl and cover with boiling water; steep 10
minutes. Drain and chop coarsely in the food processor. Combine with
remaining ingredients. To prepare in advance, cover tightly with
plastic wrap and keep at a cool room temperature or in the
refrigerator up to 3 days. FOR THE DOUGH: Combine the flour, sugar
and baking powder in a bowl and stir to mix. Rub in the lard or
butter finely, leaving the mixture powdery. Beat the eggs and milk to
combine in a small bowl and stir into the flour mixture to form a
dough. Turn the dough out on a lightly floured surface and knead
lightly a few times. Wrap the dough in plastic and chill. Divide the
dough into 12 pieces and roll each into a cylinder about 12 inches
long. Flour the surface and the dough lightly and roll it into a
rectangle about 14 inches long and 3 inches wide. Place a line of the
filling down the center of each rectangle, using 1/12 of the filling
for each piece of dough. Bring up the dough around the filling and
pinch to seal. Turn the filled sausage of dough over so that the seam
is on the bottom and cut it into 3 1/2- to 4-inch lengths. Using a
sharp paring knife or single-edge razor blade, make a series of
diagonal slashes in the top of each little sausage. Pull and twist
gently, holding the sausage at each end to open the slashes. Transfer
the Cucidati as they are formed to paper- lined cookie sheets,
curving them into wide horseshoe shapes. Make an egg wash by beating
the egg and salt together with a fork until it is loose. Paint each
shape with the egg wash. Bake the Cucidati in a preheated 350F oven
about 20 minutes, or until they are a light golden color. Cool, dust
with confectioners' sugar and store the Cucidati in tins, between
layers of wax paper.

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