flipZézettes de Sète
Zézettes de Sète
Why this dish? A small emblematic dry biscuit from Sète, Agnès Varda's childhood town. Light, sweet, and long-lasting, it's the snack you slip into your pocket or basket — like the gleaner's — for long days of filming and travel.
Thin, crunchy dry biscuits rolled in sugar, flavored with white wine. They keep for weeks and accompany coffee or a glass of carthagène.
Zézettes are the candy of Sète — a name that makes children laugh and a taste that brings them back. Nothing simpler: flour, sugar, a little oil, and a splash of white wine, and you roll small sticks that you coat in sugar before baking. I always had a few at the bottom of my bag, between the film reel and the sketchbook. They keep for days, the companion of long roads.
- •Flour — as needed (base)
- •Sugar — generous (sweetener + coating)
- •Oil (mild olive or neutral) — a glass (fat)
- •White wine — a glass (binder + flavor)
Zézettes de Sète
Thin, crunchy dry biscuits rolled in sugar, flavored with white wine. They keep for weeks and accompany coffee or a glass of carthagène.
Why this dish? A small emblematic dry biscuit from Sète, Agnès Varda's childhood town. Light, sweet, and long-lasting, it's the snack you slip into your pocket or basket — like the gleaner's — for long days of filming and travel.
Zézettes are the candy of Sète — a name that makes children laugh and a taste that brings them back. Nothing simpler: flour, sugar, a little oil, and a splash of white wine, and you roll small sticks that you coat in sugar before baking. I always had a few at the bottom of my bag, between the film reel and the sketchbook. They keep for days, the companion of long roads.
Ingredients (period version)
- Flour — as needed (base)
- Sugar — generous (sweetener + coating)
- Oil (mild olive or neutral) — a glass (fat)
- White wine — a glass (binder + flavor)
Ingredients
- Flour — 250 g (base)
- Sugar — 100 g + extra for rolling (sweetener + coating)
- Neutral oil — 10 cl (fat)
- Dry white wine — 10 cl (binder + flavor)
- Baking powder — 1 packet (light leavening)
- Vanilla sugar — 1 packet (flavor)
Method
- Mix flour, sugar, baking powder, and vanilla sugar.
- Add oil and white wine, knead until a smooth, homogeneous dough forms.
- Take small pieces and roll them into thin sticks 6-7 cm long, pointed at the ends.
- Roll each stick in crystallized sugar.
- Place on a baking sheet and bake at 180°C for 15-20 min until golden.
- Let cool completely: they harden as they crisp and keep for several weeks in a box.
How it was made : Zézettes de Sète are a traditional biscuit from the port, popularized in the 20th century, whose playfully naughty name is part of local folklore. Their eggless, butterless dough made with oil and wine produced a thrifty, long-lasting cookie perfect for sailors and travelers.
The contemporary twist : A version with Menton lemon zest and brown sugar, presented as a bouquet in a kraft paper cone — a chic on-set snack.
Sources : Biscuiterie de Sète — patrimoine local · Inventaire du patrimoine culinaire de la France — Languedoc-Roussillon
Agnès Varda · Charactorium
