Cantucci Cookies - Tuscan Almond Biscotti
This recipe was shared with my by the Nonna's who work at Mulina Val d'Orcia in Italy. I received this recipe as part of the Tuscan Women who Cook tour I took in September of 2024. These Biscotti cookies include almonds, butter, sugar, flour and all the things that make cookies delicious!
Equipment
- Mixer or Handheld Beaters
- Baking Sheets
Ingredients
- 500 g "00" Flour or All Purpose ~ roughly 4C of flour or 17.6 oz
- 250 g Butter Room Temp ~ 1 C (2 Sticks) or 8.8 oz
- 250 g Sugar ~1 ¼ C Sugar or 8.8 oz
- 30 g Honey ~1.5 TBL
- 3 Egg Yolks Room Temp
- 2 Eggs Room Temp
- 150 g Raw, Whole Almonds ~1 heaping C, unsalted, toasted and rough chopped
- 1 Tbl baking powder OR Italian PANEANGELI LIEVITO (SEE PIC)
- 1 tsp Almond Flavor ---not included in original recipe!
- ½ tsp Salt ---not included in original recipe!
Instructions
- Get all your ingredients ready.
- Prepare the Almonds by roasting them in the oven at 350℉ for about 25-30 minutes. Check on them and toss on the pan every 10 minutes. Roughly chop the almonds (once cool) and set aside.
- In your mixer, or using a handheld, cream together the room temp butter and sugar. Once the mixture is 'whippy' (nearly doubled in volume and light colored) you should be done.
- Add the egg yolks, and eggs, mixing after each yolk or egg addition. Scraping down the bowl.
- Add the honey and mix.
- Whisk the flour and the baking powder (Lievito) together. Add the flour to the butter / sugar mixture in several additions. Mix till just combined.
- Add the almonds and fold in using a spatula.
- Lightly dust your counter and dump the mixture onto the counter. Knead the dough ever so slightly together making sure it is uniform. The dough should be soft and yet a bit firm. (!?). The dough should not be sticky and your hands should not be dirty. If so - add a slight dusting of flour and integrate to the dough by lightly folding / kneading. If you depress the dough it should hold it's depression
- Separate the dough into two pieces. Form a small log and then roll the log longer and thinner using your palms and a back and forth rolling motion. Place two logs onto a cookie sheet and refrigerate for 30 minutes. Do not make the logs too thick else they won't bake evenly.
- Preheat your oven to 350℉ while the biscotti is in the fridge.
- Bake the biscotti for 25-35 minutes. The biscotti should be lightly golden when finished baking. (Mine needed a few more minutes.) Check on them near the end of the baking time.
- Allow the biscotti to rest and cool for 30 minutes.
- Slice the biscotti into 3/4" slices and place the slices on baking sheets with space between the pieces so air can circulate.
- Bake the biscotti a second time at 300 for about 20 minutes. The cookies ought to be somewhat crunchy after the second bake. As these biscotti have butter in them - they will still remain somewhat chewy so it's a balance between baked twice and still somewhat crunchy and somewhat chewy. You can bake longer if you prefer them even crunchier. Note you can store them on the counter for about a week.
Notes
I used a handheld mixer this first time. Next time I'll use the Kitchenaid. It will be easier to maneuver.
Nutrition
Calories: 292kcalCarbohydrates: 35gProtein: 5gFat: 15gSaturated Fat: 7gPolyunsaturated Fat: 2gMonounsaturated Fat: 5gTrans Fat: 0.4gCholesterol: 72mgSodium: 225mgPotassium: 95mgFiber: 2gSugar: 14gVitamin A: 376IUVitamin C: 0.01mgCalcium: 77mgIron: 2mg
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!