Gluten-free Zeppole di San Giuseppe

Preparation steps

• Put water on the fire, add butter, a teaspoon of sugar and cook until it boils. Remove from the heat immediately and add the flour.
• Stir until the dough begins to separate from the pan.
• Allow the dough to cool a bit. Add a little grated lemon zest and one egg at a time.
• Do not put the second egg until the first is perfectly mixed. If a lump is made, mix everything with a stick mixer.
• Leave the mixture to rest for about 20 minutes, then put it in a bag and start with a wide star-shaped top. Line the oven tray with greaseproof paper and make small zeppoles. I got about 25 zeppoles.
• Bake at 200 ° for 20 minutes without ever opening the oven, then reduce to 160 ° and bake for another 10 minutes. After 10 minutes, open the oven and make sure the dough is baked enough. It must be an intense golden yellow color. If you think it is not baked enough, leave it to bake for another 5 minutes. When the dough is perfectly baked, turn off the oven, open it a little and leave the zeppoles inside to cool.
• For the cream in a larger pot, first put the dry ingredients, mix them well ..... add a little milk, stir carefully so that no lumps form, then add the rest of the milk and a little vanilla. Finally, add one egg at a time, stirring vigorously. Cook over medium heat. stirring constantly with a whisk in the same direction until thickened. Allow to cool, stirring every now and then to avoid shrimp formation.
• When the cream has cooled, cut the zeppoles in half and fill them with the cream. Put a little cream on top of the zeppola with a syringe. Sprinkle everything with powdered sugar and decorate with cherries. Zeppolas are better the next day.