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Desserts

Original Cantucci (Tuscan Almond Biscotti)

Cantucci are crunchy Tuscan almond cookies, created to be enjoyed with Vin Santo. Let's see how to make them together.
Recipe Original Cantucci (Tuscan Almond Biscotti)
  • Difficulty Medium
  • Preparation 15 minutes
  • Cooking 25 minutes
  • Servings for 30 cantucci

Cantucci are crunchy, dry cookies made with almonds and a specialty of Tuscany, more precisely of the city of Prato, created to accompany the famous Vin Santo, a Tuscan dessert wine.

Also known as Biscotti di Prato, these cookies are among the best-known and best-loved Italian cookies in the world, and tradition has it that the cantuccini recipe was perfected by none other than Catherine de’ Medici, who adored them.

What makes this recipe special is the double baking, which toasts these almond cookies and makes them pleasantly crunchy and perfect for dunking in dessert wine. But cantucci cookies are a treat to nibble on at any time of day, even just with a coffee during a break.

As you’ll see, making cantucci dough is really simple, and the baking is fairly quick, too. That’s why, and because they keep so well, we definitely recommend making a big batch and keeping them on hand in the pantry, so you can always offer anyone, even unexpected guests, the pleasure of fragrant homemade cookies.

If you’re looking for more traditional cookie recipes, don’t miss these treats: Paste di Meliga (Piedmontese Cornmeal Cookies), Wine Cookies, Canestrelli, Pan dei Morti, Ladyfingers, and Butter Torcetti.

Now let’s gather the ingredients and get our hands in the dough: let’s make these crumbly cantucci together.

 

Ingredients for 30 cantucci

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Method

  1. Put the sugar and eggs in a medium bowl and beat briefly with an electric mixer. Then add the flour and baking soda and work the mixture until it looks sandy.
  2. Now add the butter, honey, grated orange zest, and almonds to the bowl and work everything into a smooth dough.
  3. Divide the dough in two and shape each half into a long, fairly narrow log; place the logs on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Brush them with the beaten egg yolk and bake in a preheated conventional oven at 190 °C (375 °F) for 20 minutes.
  4. Take the logs out of the oven and let them cool slightly. Using a serrated knife, slice each log on a slight diagonal into cantucci about 1 cm thick. Arrange them again on the parchment-lined baking sheet and bake at 200 °C (400 °F) for another 5 minutes, until golden.
  5. Take the cantucci out of the oven and let them cool before serving them with a glass of Vin Santo. Finally, remember to download our App with exclusive content and fewer ads!

Variations and Alternatives

If you don’t like orange zest in the dough, you can replace it with lemon zest or simply leave it out. To make your cantucci even more indulgent, you can also add some dark chocolate chips to the dough.

Tips

We recommend letting the freshly baked logs cool slightly before slicing them, otherwise the slices may break and you won’t get perfectly shaped cantucci.

Storage

Cantucci keep at room temperature in an airtight cookie jar for up to 2 weeks after baking.

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