Cantuccini is a traditional italian twice-baked almond cookies. It is extra crunchy, its made to be dunked in sweet wine or coffee. Cantuccini is the 'grandmother' of the biscotti, which means “biscuits” in Italian.
The taste and components has mutated, but the form has stayed true to the original. The only addition to the basic biscuit dough in the original cantuccini are almonds.
The trick that makes cantuccini so crunchy is the double baking. The first baking of the cantuccini is done in a loaf-form. As soon as the loaf is golden-brown, you should take it out of the oven, let it cool, not burn your hands, then carefully slice it, and bake the slices in the oven again.
Ingredients:
- 100 g Whole unpeeled almonds, brazil nut, white chocolate and dried cranberries (all in all)
- 250 g all purpose flour
- 2 g Baking powder
- pinc of salt
- 150 g sugar
- 2 small eggs+ 1 for brushing
- Lemon zest - from 1 lemon
- 75 g melted butter
Set a rack in the middle level of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees. In a bowl combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, lemon zest; stir well to mix. Stir in the seeds and teh cranberries. Add the eggs and teh melted butter and combine together well.
Scrape the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface and divide it in half. Roll each half under the palms of your hands into a loaf not more than 4cm high.
Place the loafs on the baking sheet, making sure they are neither too close to each other nor to the sides of the pan. Press down gently with the palm of your hand to flatten the logs. Bake for about 25 to 30 minutes, or until the logs are well risen and have also spread to about double their original size. The logs are done when pressed with fingertip they feel firm.
Place the pan on a rack and let the logs cool completely.
These crunchy cookies will keep for up to one week in a tightly-covered tin. Serve with Vin Santo, coffee, or tea.
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