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5 maltatoday | WEDNESDAY • 20 MARCH 2019 NEWS DAVID HUDSON ST Joseph's feast is originally an Italian feast that was appro- priated by Malta. The bounty that comes with this feast—zep- pole—were likewise appropri- ated to huge success. St Joseph is the patron saint of workers and happy death and the connection he has with zeppoli is ambiguous to say the least. The closest MaltaToday got to an answer was a statement made by Father Martin Coleiro from the Franciscan convent in Rabat. "There's a history of people coming to Rabat for St Joseph's feast during lent. The reason is that people doing this were exempt from fasting at least for this one day. So people ate the sweet Italian zeppoli. A lot of them." According to the New Eng- land Historical Society, the sto- ry goes that the original staple of the feast day's meal was the fava bean, which had saved the Sicilians from starvation. This fava bean gave way to dessert. During the 19th Century, a Ne- apolitan baker named Pasquale Pintauro popularized the treat by selling them from a street cart every March 19. There's another thing: the link between sfineg and zep- poli. While most would assume that they are one and the same thing, Busy Bee part-owner Luke Friggieri told MaltaToday that sfineg usually refers to the sweet ones while zeppoli refers to the savoury version. Zeppoli are originally Italian deep-fried pastry filled with ricotta and other sweet ingredi- ents, also tied to the feast of St Joseph. Elia Borg Bonaci is one of the very few caterers on the island that makes Zeppoli using rice rather than ricotta. "We don't keep making sfineg after St Joseph's feast even though they sell very well, over 15,000 during this time of year. The reason is that people stop asking for them once the feast is over," Friggieri said. Popular tea shop Serkin also capitalised on the zeppoli craze during this time as the owner, Kenneth Ciangura, told Malta- Today that the decision to make them was reached just a week ago and they sold hundreds of them, courtesy of their Italian chef. "I usually advertise new prod- ucts on Facebook. I didn't this time because I wouldn't have had any left for the people who came asking for them. We sold hundreds in a week," he said. Ciangura argued that the zep- poli would be discontinued af- ter the feast is over, especially because making them is such an arduous task. NOTICE BY THE ELECTORAL COMMISSION European Parliament Election – May 2019 NOTIFICATION by the Electoral Commission addressed to resident non-Maltese EU citizens who wish to vote in Malta for candidates standing for elections in Malta. Those persons already in possession of a valid Residence Card issued by Identity Malta Agency who had originally opted not to vote in Malta (i.e. they would vote in their home country) may become registered voters by completing and submitting an appropiate application form by 31st March 2019, which may be obtained from and deposited at the Local Council Office where the voter resides, at any Police Station and at the Electoral Offices (Valletta and Rabat, Gozo). The form may be downloaded from the Electoral Commission's website : https://electoral.gov.mt/Media/Default/Documents/DOWNLOADS/ ApplicationForms/MEPForm.pdf Completed forms may also be sent to the Electoral Offices, free of postal charge. Those persons who do not possess a valid Residence Card issued by Identity Malta need to apply at the Citizenship Department, Identity Malta Agency, Evans Building, Valletta, by not later than 31st March 2019. Upon doing so they must clearly sign their intention to vote in Malta binding themselves not to vote in this election in their home country. www.electoral.gov.mt The strange case of the zeppoli of St Joseph Every year, people flock to Rabat for St Joseph's feast during lent

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