Pezzetti di Cannella

I have to mention one more cookie before the holiday season ends. This was a new one for me. It’s from the book Southern Italian Desserts by Rosetta Costantino. I received this book as a Christmas gift a year ago, and there are delightful cakes, pastries, tarts, gelatos, fruit desserts, and lots of cookies in it. Since I first read the book, I’ve been thinking about the La Deliziosa sandwich cookies filled with hazelnut cream. The cookies are actually made from pastry that’s cut into circles and then sandwiched with a pastry cream with added hazelnut paste. Last, the edges are rolled in finely chopped hazelnuts. They’re delicate and pretty, and they look delicious in the photo in the book. However, I needed to bake some cookies that would ship well and that could be kept at room temperature for several days. That’s how I arrived at the page for these crunchy, little cinnamon cookies. The recipe is from Puglia, and it includes lots of great flavor from cinnamon, cocoa powder, and lemon. It also makes a lot of cookies, but they’re petite, bite-size cookies that could last for weeks in theory. I’m not actually sure how long they could last because between packing and sending some and nibbling the rest, they disappeared in just a few days. 

The dough couldn’t be easier since it’s simply mixed with a fork and then kneaded by hand. Flour, sugar, cocoa powder, cinnamon, and baking powder were combined in a large bowl. A well was made in the center of the dry ingredients, and eggs, vegetable oil, a little milk, and lemon zest were added and mixed with a fork before being kneaded by hand. The dough was then wrapped in plastic wrap and set aside for about 30 minutes. To form the cookies, the dough was first divided into four pieces. Each piece was rolled by hand into a long rope just a little over one half inch wide. The rope was cut on the diagonal into one-inch pieces that were placed on baking sheets and baked for twelve minutes until puffed and firm. A glaze was made with confectioners’ sugar and lemon juice. The cooled cookies were tossed in the glaze and then set on baking sheets to dry. It takes several hours for the glaze to dry completely, and I left the cookies to dry overnight. Once dry, they were ready to be packed and shipped. 

I was intrigued by the combination of cinnamon, cocoa, and lemon, and now I’m so glad to have tried these cookies. Cinnamon takes center stage among the flavors, but the cocoa and lemon don’t go unnoticed. All together, they made these cookies completely addictive. And, since they’re tiny cookies, it’s very easy to keep reaching back for more. Next, I’ll have to circle back to the delicate hazelnut cookies or maybe some classic cannoli for serving right at home. 

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