Author Notes
Warning up front: this is not a diabetic-friendly cookie, and I do not eat them any more. On the other hand, there are only a few recipes I have that are truly "a family recipe," and this is one of them. My Sicilian grandfather (nannu), Umberto, used to make these cookies. We simply called them jawbreakers, so I have no idea what they are actually called, but they are close to the Rococo cookie of Naples, so I am hereby officially designating them as the Sicilian Rococo cookie. These are great for dipping in coffee. I have upped the spices from nannu's recipe, and my family still gets dozens of these as a part of their Christmas packages from me each year. At some point when I am making them, about half-way through, I spice up the dough a bit more with 2T of cayenne. I am pretty sure they never did that in Sicily. —Brian Coppola
Ingredients
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2.5 pounds
almonds, processed into small pieces
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7 cups
all-purpose flour
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3 cups
sugar
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2
sticks of softened butter
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2 cups
water
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5 tablespoons
cinnamon
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2 tablespoons
ground cloves
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2 tablespoons
ground allspice
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2 tablespoons
dried lemon peel
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2 tablespoons
dried orange peel
Directions
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Line a large jelly roll pan (or comparable) with parchment paper. Preheat the over to 350F.
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Combine all of the dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl and mix well.
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Kneed in the butter, and then the water. Let the dough sit for about 5 minutes.
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Roll small handfuls of the dough into thin ropes in a scant dusting of flour, about 1/2 inch in diameter. Take a 4-inch segment and fold it back on itself into a stylized fish shape and place into the parchment.
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Bake at 375F for 30 minutes. Cool on a rack.
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If you want to make some with a little kick, add cayenne to the dough.
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