CookEat Recipe
Cavallucci di Siena
Pale flour-dusted walnut biscuits scented with anise, candied orange and warm spices, bound with a lightly cooked sugar syrup.
Method
Steps
Step 1
Gather the ingredients: 300 g plain flour, plus extra as needed to make a workable dough and dust the biscuits; allow roughly 50–150 g extra; 300 g light brown sugar; 100 ml water; 100 g shelled walnuts; 50 g candied orange peel; 15 g anise seeds; 5 g ground spices in total: for example 2.5 g cinnamon, 1.5 g clove and 1 g nutmeg.
Step 2
Chop the walnuts into small pieces about 3–5 mm across and dice the candied orange finely. Mix the nuts, orange, anise and ground spices in a heatproof bowl. Put the measured 300 g flour in a wide heatproof mixing bowl; keep additional flour separate. Heat the oven to 150°C and line two baking trays with baking paper.
Step 3
Put the light brown sugar and water in a saucepan. Heat gently until dissolved, then boil just to the first thread stage, about 110°C at sea level. Use a candy thermometer; a small spoonful dropped into cold water should form a loose liquid thread, not a ball. Stop before the syrup darkens or becomes a thick caramel. Never test boiling syrup between your fingers. At altitude, reduce the target by the difference between the local boiling point of water and 100°C.
Step 4
Take the pan off the heat and stir in the walnut, peel, anise and spice mixture. Pour carefully onto the measured flour. Mix with a sturdy heatproof spoon, adding extra flour a little at a time until a firm sticky dough forms. Add only as much as needed, rather than automatically adding all the reserve. Keep hands away until the mixture is comfortable to handle.
Step 5
Divide the warm workable dough into about 45 pieces, or a few more according to size. Shape into thick small ovals with gently tapered ends, about 4.5 × 3.2 cm and roughly 1–1.5 cm thick. Dust the tops lightly with flour to reduce sticking and place on the trays with a little space between them. These are oval biscuits, not horse-shaped cookies.
Step 6
Bake for about 15–20 minutes, checking early, until set and dry on the outside while still very pale. Avoid browning. Let cool fully on a rack; they become firmer as they cool. Store in an airtight container once completely cold.
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