BISCOTTI bounty

Contrary to popular belief, biscotti doesn’t refer to a particular type of biscuit, it’s actually the Italian word for all biscuits. And each region in Italy boasts it own special variety

These nut studded bars are dry, crunchy and could even be called hard because they are baked not once, but twice. Keep the cantucci in a cookie tin and they will last for a long time, but, if you let them dry out at room temperature for a day, their flavour gets even better.

Prep time: 30 minutes

Cook time: 1 hour

Makes: 10 cantucci

250g SpinneysFOOD All-Purpose Flour

½ tsp baking powder

Pinch of SpinneysFOOD Fine Sea Salt

1 lemon

250g SpinneysFOOD Fine Grain White Sugar

1 large SpinneysFOOD Organic Free-Range Egg, at room temperature

1 egg yolk, room temperature

1 tsp vanilla extract

100g toasted almonds

100g raw pistachios

1 Preheat the oven to 180°C, gas mark 4. Lightly flour a baking sheet. 2 Place the flour in the bowl of a stand mixer along with the baking powder and salt. 3 Grate the lemon zest into another bowl. Add the sugar and rub the zest into the sugar. Add to the stand mixer’s bowl along with the whole egg, egg yolk and vanilla extract. Add the nuts and mix the dough for 4-5 minutes. 4 Lightly flour our hands then place the dough on the baking sheet and shape it into a large log – 38cm long and 8cm wide. 5 Bake for 35 minutes. 6 Remove from the oven and reduce the temperature to 160°C, gas mark 2.

7 Cut the logs diagonally into 2½cm slices and lay them cut side up on the sheet. Return to the oven for a further 15 minutes. 8 Remove from the oven and allow to cool on a rack. 9 Store in an airtight container for up to 1 month.

These ‘ox eye’ cookies were named so because they resemble the eye of a bull. These are buttery, melt-in the-mouth cookies with a tangy jam filling.

Prep time: 20 minutes (plus chilling time)

Cook time: 15 minutes

Makes: 12

125g SpinneysFOOD Unsalted Butter, cold 250g 00 flour

100g SpinneysFOOD Super Fine Icing Sugar

2 egg yolks

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 egg white

300g SpinneysFOOD Raspberry Preserve

SpinneysFOOD Super Fine Icing Sugar, for dusting

1 Preheat the oven to 180°C, gas mark 4.

2 Cube the butter and place it in a food processor. Add the flour and icing sugar and pulse until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs. Add the egg yolks and vanilla extract. Pulse by TheKateTin.com until the mixture comes together to form a soft dough. Wrap with cling film and refrigerate for 30 minutes. 3 Roll the pastry out on a floured surface to 5mm thickness. Using a water glass, cut out 7cm rounds. Cut out a small hole in the centre of half the cookies. Brush the edges of the whole circles with the egg white and stick the cookies with the hole in them on top. Fill the centre with jam. 4 Refrigerate for 30 minutes.

5 Bake for 20 minutes, or until just golden.

6 Dust with icing sugar and serve.

Prep time: 15 minutes

Cook time: 25 minutes

Makes: 12

100g skinned almonds

100g skinned hazelnuts

9 large egg whites, at room temperature

240g SpinneysFOOD Fine Grain White Sugar

¾ tsp vanilla extract

1 Preheat the oven to 180°C, gas mark 4. Line a baking tray with parchment paper. 2 Toast the almonds and hazelnuts then chop them to the size of fat rice kernels. 3 Beat 8 egg whites in the bowl of a stand mixer until soft peaks are formed. Continue to beat, gradually adding the sugar, until the peaks are stiff and shiny. Stir in the vanilla until blended. Fold in the nuts.

4 Transfer the mixture to a saucepan and cook over a low heat for 10 minutes. The mixture will deflate. It’s done when it is light brown and pulls away from the sides of the pan. If the mixture is dry and crumbly, add the last egg white, a little at a time, to moisten it. Remove the mixture from the heat. 5 Using a 1½ tablespoon cookie scoop, drop the mixture onto the baking tray, approx. 2cm apart. 6 Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until soft but golden. 7 Store for up to two days in an airtight container.

These delicate and soft cookies have a marzipan-like texture. Ricciarelli are best when made at home and eaten fresh.

Prep time: 35 minutes (plus resting time)

Cook time: 25 minutes

Makes: 14

200g SpinneysFOOD Almond Nut Butter

200g SpinneysFOOD Super Fine Icing Sugar

30ml egg white

100g ground almonds

½ tsp baking powder

1 tsp vanilla extract

To serve

SpinneysFOOD Super Fine Icing Sugar

1 Place the almond butter and icing sugar in a blender. Blitz to form a smooth paste. Add the egg white, ground almonds, baking powder and vanilla extract and blend until a soft dough forms. 2 Transfer the dough to a surface dusted with icing sugar and roll into a long log, approx. 2cm wide. Slice the log at 3cm intervals. Shape each piece into a diamond/lozenge shape.

3 Sift the icing sugar over the shaped dough and flatten slightly. Place them spaced apart on a lined baking sheet and leave uncovered at room temperature for at least 1 hour or overnight.

4 Preheat the oven to 180°C, gas mark 4.

5 Bake the cookies until barely browned, approx. 20-25 minutes. The cookies should still be soft. 6 Serve with a dusting of icing sugar.

These buttery cookies are usually made with almonds, but since they originated in Piedmont, which is famous for hazelnuts, we’ve used them in this recipe.

Prep time: 20 minutes (plus chilling time)

Cook time: 15 minutes

Makes: 48 kisses

125g shelled hazelnuts

125g SpinneysFOOD Extra Fine Caster Sugar

130g SpinneysFOOD Unsalted Butter, room temperature

1½ tsp vanilla extract

Pinch of SpinneysFOOD Fine Sea Salt

125g SpinneysFOOD All-Purpose Flour

120g dark chocolate

1 Preheat the oven to 180°C, gas mark 4. Grease two baking sheets with butter.

2 Grind the hazelnuts to a very fine powder in a nut grinder or food processor fitted with the steel blade. (If using a food processor, add 2 tablespoons of the sugar so that the nuts don’t become too oily.) Mix the hazelnuts and the remaining sugar in a mixer bowl, or in the food processor. Add the butter, vanilla extract and salt and process until very light and creamy, approx. 4-5 minutes. Sift the four over the top and fold in. 3 Wrap in cling film and place in the fridge for 30 minutes. 4 Break off pieces of the dough, the size of fat cherries, and roll them into balls. Place 4cm apart on the baking sheets and flatten slightly to approx. 1cm thick. 5 Bake the cookies until light golden brown, approx. 15 minutes. Remove from the oven and place on a cooling rack. 6 Meanwhile, roughly chop the chocolate and place in a heat-proof bowl. Place the bowl over a pot of over simmering water and allow the chocolate to melt completely. Set aside to cool slightly. 7 Pour the slightly cooled chocolate into a piping bag. 8 When the cookies are cool, pipe the chocolate onto the flat side of one of the cookies and sandwich with another. Repeat with the remaining cookies. 9 Store in an airtight container for 3 days, or in the freezer for up to 3 months.

Savoiardi, also known as ladyfingers, got their name from the house of Savoy, the most powerful dynasty in Northern Italy, when it ruled Piedmont in the 17th century.

Prep time: 20 minutes

Cook time: 15 minutes

Makes: 30

3 large SpinneysFOOD Organic Free-Range Eggs, at room temperature

160g SpinneysFOOD Fine Grain White Sugar

2 drops vinegar

1 tsp vanilla extract

125g SpinneysFOOD All-Purpose Flour 40g corn flour

Pinch of SpinneysFOOD Fine Sea Salt

1 tbsp SpinneysFOOD Super Fine Icing Sugar

1 Preheat the oven to 220°C, gas mark 6.

2 Separate the egg yolks from the whites. Place the yolks along with 3 tablespoons of the sugar in a large mixing bowl. Using an electric beater, beat the yolks and sugar together until light and thick, and forms a slowly dissolving ribbon when the beater is lifted, 7-10 minutes. 3 Using clean beaters, beat the egg whites in a warmed bowl at a high speed until foamy. Gradually beat in the remaining sugar and continue beating at a high speed until the peaks are stiff and shiny. Beat in the vinegar and vanilla extract. 4 Sift the flour, corn flour and salt together. 5 Fold a quarter of the egg yolks into the whites; then alternately fold the flour mixture and the egg whites into the egg yolk mixture. 6 Spoon the batter into a pastry bag fitted with a 2½ cm plain tip. Pipe 12cm long strips of the batter about 2½cm apart on greased and floured baking paper-lined baking trays, in a savoiardi tray. Sift icing sugar generously over the tops. 7 Bake until lightly golden, 10-15 minutes. Cool on racks. 8 Savoiardi keep for 2-3 weeks in an airtight container.