Almond Cantucci

Cantucci with Almonds. Cantucci Toscani IGP from Quarrata, crumbly instead of rock-hard.

Cantucci Toscani IGP with almonds are Tuscan almond biscuits from Fratelli Lunardi, baked in Quarrata with whole, unpeeled almonds. Not industrial biscuits, not a biscuit that resists when bitten, none that needs a glass of sweet wine to soften.

Cantucci Toscani IGP is the protected designation for Tuscan almond biscuits that follow a strict European set of rules. Fratelli Lunardi adheres to these rules while also utilizing the one loophole they provide. In the bakery in Quarrata, the dough strands are still steaming on the baking sheet when the knife cuts diagonally. The cut surface reveals a light, fine-pored crumb with almonds in their brown skins. When you take a piece out of the bag, you feel it between your fingers. This biscuit breaks before your teeth are even involved.

The brown skin of the almond makes all the difference

The natural almond brings a subtle bitterness that contrasts with the sweetness in the dough. Peeled almonds cannot do this.

Then two things happen in the mouth. The crumb crumbles buttery and quickly, the almond pieces remain and crack between the teeth. This coexistence of melt and crunch carries the entire biscuit. Behind it lies a subtle citrus note that makes the aftertaste last longer than one would expect from an almond pastry.

The aroma from the freshly opened bag leans towards warm butter and roasted nuts, not towards marzipan. This is a good indication of the processing. Where almonds are ground, marzipan aroma develops. Where they remain whole, the roasted note persists.

An almond content of at least one-fifth sounds like statistics, but it is immediately measurable in the mouth. Every bite contains at least half a kernel. The dough is therefore more a binder than the main act, and that is exactly how the recipe was intended.

Each piece tapers to a point on both sides and is thickest in the middle. As a result, no two bites are the same. At the wide end, the dough predominates, at the tip, the roast, and in between sits the almond.

Those who expect the dry Prato bite will miss something here. These biscuits do not resist, they yield. If you are looking for the hard classic, the Cantuccini Prato style are the more honest choice. The butter also makes Lunardi's biscuit richer than its size suggests. Three pieces are a portion, not five.

A quick dip in Vin Santo is enough

For espresso after dinner, this biscuit needs no preparation. It is soft enough to work without liquid.

Traditionally, in Tuscany, it is dipped in a glass of Vin Santo. This also works here, but requires timing. Two seconds are enough, after which the buttery crumb dissolves and sinks to the bottom. It is not suitable as a dipping biscuit for a long soak in dessert wine. However, it pairs very well with a mild Grappa or a Moscato, as the almond tolerates brandy and residual sweetness.

Three ideas beyond the glass. Two biscuits, roughly chopped, over a scoop of vanilla ice cream, with a spoonful of warm honey. Four to five pieces crushed in a mortar make a crust for baked apricots or peach halves, ten minutes at 180 °C. And as a base for a glass dessert, 60 g of crumbled cantucci replace any ladyfinger, with significantly more roasted aroma.

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