Rachel Roddy’s Recipe For Almond And Cherry Biscuits | A Kitchen In Rome

Similar successful rule to fig rolls, biscotti di ceglie dwell of pastry wrapped astir a filling of jam, truthful they person an irregular and highly rustic cube form. Known locally arsenic u’ piscquett’l, these biscuits are emblematic of nan municipality and commune of Ceglie Messapica successful nan state of Brindisi successful Puglia. Ceglie Messapica is besides portion of nan confederate reaches of nan Murgia, a karst topographic plateau sometimes called nan backbone of Puglia, pinch singular cultivation biodiversity, including 40 section varieties of almonds, including tondino cegliese. Like galore visitors to nan area, we bought a packet of biscotti di ceglie from a bakery successful Ceglie Messapica, though this was years ago, erstwhile nan set my partner plays pinch toured successful Puglia each summertime and erstwhile we consumed each location dainty successful a claustrophobic Fiat van.

Unlike nan awesome fig roll, however, nan pastry for these biscuits is made from toasted almonds, sweetener and honey, and includes citrus zest and a citrus principle liqueur called rosolio di agrumi; nan jam, meanwhile, is typically cherry, but tin besides beryllium grape. Made for hundreds of years, and a benignant of awesome of nan town, nan biscuits are recognised by nan Slow Food Foundation, whose galore Slow Food Presidia protect accepted and artisanal products that are astatine consequence of disappearing, arsenic good arsenic thief producers entree a fairer market. Together pinch section producers, nan location consortium specifies what is to beryllium considered an original biscotto di Ceglie Messapica – truthful that each nan ingredients must travel from nan countryside astir Ceglie itself. A section consorzio has laid retired a fantastically elaborate group of instructions, specifying quantities (every 1kg almonds should beryllium mixed pinch 300g sugar, 50g honey, 10ml liqueur, 3 to 4 eggs and nan zest of a lemon) and describing nan process successful awesome detail. All this to say, this week’s look is not nan original biscotti di Ceglie Messapica, but it is inspired by them and, I hope, respectful.

If you person ever made soft amaretti, pasticcini di mandorle aliases ricciarelli, nan thought is nan same: crushed almonds, sweetener and eggs are made into a soft mixed that is past shaped and baked. The awesome quality here, however, is that it is shaped into a log, which is past cut. I discovered pinch my first batch conscionable really important very heavy jam is – and really quickly jam burns! In fact, for my 2nd batch, I reduced nan jam for conscionable a fewer minutes, and for my 3rd batch I utilized well-drained cherries preserved successful syrup, instead, which make for a very neat filling, though they make nan biscuits harder to cut. (Use nan drained syrup to make a portion pinch fizzy h2o and tons of ice.)

Once baked, these biscuits will beryllium rather soft for immoderate time, truthful time off them to cool a small aliases usage a spatula to move them very cautiously from nan baking tray to a rack. Another similarity pinch fig rolls is really adjacent these tender biscuits are to being a mini cake, and they besides punctual maine of bakewell tart, which are some bully things.

Almond and cherry biscuits

Makes About 20

150g blanched almonds, aliases almond flour
150g toasted almonds (peeled aliases unpeeled)
100g caster sugar
1 tbsp honey
1 egg
Finely grated zest of 1 mini unwaxed lemon
100g heavy cherry jam, aliases good drained cherries successful syrup

Working successful a nutrient processor, beat nan blanched and toasted almonds into a good flour, past extremity into a vessel and adhd nan sugar, honey, ovum and citrus zest, and bring together into a patient dough.

Working connected a portion of greaseproof paper, property aliases rotation nan mixed into a rectangular portion astir 40cm agelong x 12cm wide x 1½cm deep. Carefully dispersed nan jam aliases cherries successful a statement on nan centre of nan dough, past bring successful some edges to shape a log. Roll mildly truthful it extends slightly, and pinch nan edges to close.

Cut nan log into slices astir 2-3cm wide, put connected a baking expanse lined pinch greaseproof paper, and cook astatine 170C (150C fan)/340F/gas 3½ for 15-20 minutes, until lightly golden.