Francavilla Fontana Confetto riccio

The Francavilla Fontana confetto riccio is a spheroidal shaped sugar covered almond which has a rough white coloured surface. The texture is tender and crumbly on the outside, while on the inside, the hardness and crunchiness are due to the fact that the almond is toasted. It has a sweet flavour, with a slight hint of lemon.
Although stories about the confetto riccio are over a few centuries old, the first official date that it was mentioned goes back to 1912, when the pastry chef Filandro Iurlaro was awarded a gold medal for his confetto riccio at the Paris International Show. Some local families have handed down the industrious and original art of making this sugared almond from generation to generation, which is traditionally produced around the time of Carnevale.
Traditionally the “ricci” are the main components of a particular ritual. On the two Thursdays preceding Shrove Tuesday, men and women exchange sugared almonds as a sign of affection. During the first day, the scìutìa ti li femmine (Thursday of the females), the women of Francavilla give confetto riccio to the men. The gesture is then reciprocated by the men, in the scìutìa ti li masculi (Thursday of the males) during the following Shrove Thursday. The producers have been selling their confetto riccio in the streets and squares of the city centre, in historically recognised locations, for several generations.
The local almond varieties that have a rounded shape are coated with sugar and lemon to make the confetto riccio – the tondina is most commonly used, but also the catuccia, the spappacarnale and the carluccio.
The almonds are roasted inside a “conca”, a low, round and wide pot made from non-tinned red copper, which is heated at a constant temperature – about 70 ° C – using hot coals.
The conca has two rings which are fixed with ropes to a balance wheel that hangs from the ceiling of the shop or on a tripod; this allows the craftsmen who makes the riccio to carve a series of waves. The movement makes the almonds roll and, as they roll, they are covered (incamiciano) by the sugar in the bowl.
The second phase is when the wrinkles are added to the almonds, which is done by reducing the temperature of the fire – to about 50 ° C – and pouring "lu gilueppu" into the conca, which is a molten syrup, made up of hot water, sugar and a few drops of lemon, added towards the end of processing. The glaze solidifies as the water evapourates and the almonds – which are rubbing against each other – take on their classic white and wrinkled appearance.
The confetto riccio, are placed in cotton bags while they are still warm, and they are then left to cool to room temperature.

Season

Traditionally, the confetto riccio was produced during the Carnevale period, but today it is available all year round.