Name: Baked Hazelnut Cocoa Iris
Prep time: 135 min
Cook time: 10 min
Total time: 145 min
Yield: 12 buns
Cuisine: Italian, Sicilian
Ingredients: 500 g flour (plain); 250 ml lukewarm water; 50 g lard; 50 g sugar; 10 g salt; 7 g active dry yeast; Scyavuru Hazelnut and Cocoa Cream 20%, 1 tsp per bun; Milk, for brushing; Icing sugar, for dusting

A real iris is fried, but in Palermo you also find baked and chocolate versions. These baked iris keep the soft, lightly sweet dough and hide a spoonful of Scyavuru Hazelnut and Cocoa Cream 20% in the middle. No deep fryer, no breadcrumbs: just ten minutes in the oven.

Dust them with icing sugar once they have cooled completely, and eat them the same day. Want the fried original? Here is the Pistachio Iris.

Difficulty: Medium
Course: Breakfast / Snack
Time: Prep 1 h 15 min · Rise 1 h · Cook 10 min
Made with: Scyavuru Hazelnut and Cocoa Cream 20%

Ingredients for baked iris

For the dough

500 g flour (plain)
250 ml lukewarm water
50 g lard
50 g sugar
10 g salt
7 g active dry yeast

For the filling and finish

Scyavuru Hazelnut and Cocoa Cream 20%, 1 tsp per bun
Milk, for brushing
Icing sugar, for dusting

How to make baked iris

1. Wake the yeast Stir the yeast and a tablespoon of the sugar into the warm water. Wait until it foams.
2. Dough In a stand mixer with the hook attached, combine the flour, salt, lard and the rest of the sugar. Add the foamy yeast and knead until the dough is soft, smooth and stretchy.
3. Rise Cover it and leave it to double in size, about an hour.
4. Fill Cut the dough into 12 equal pieces. Flatten each one, spoon 1 tsp of Hazelnut and Cocoa Cream into the middle, then bring the edges up and pinch them shut. Set them on a lined tray with the join underneath.
5. Bake Brush the tops with milk and bake at 200 °C for about 10 minutes, until nicely golden.
6. Finish Once they’ve cooled down completely, dust with icing sugar.

Try it with…

Scyavuru Pistachio Cream 25% – pistachio iris
Scyavuru Orange Cream – orange iris
Scyavuru Speculoos Biscuits Cream or Peanut Cream
Scyavuru Pistachio Peanut Cream or Hazelnuts Cream 22%
Scyavuru Spoom Hazelnut and Cocoa 20% (300 g) or Hazelnut and Cocoa Cream (3 kg) – the same flavour in bigger sizes

Did you know?

Traditionally the iris is fried and filled with sweet ricotta. This baked version starts from the same kind of dough.
Palermo makes it with pistachio, chocolate or cream fillings, and in baked and savoury versions too.