My friend Erika brought me a jar of homemade Cantuccini cookies recently, and they didn't last longer than a day. They are SO good! She told me they are super easy to make, so I asked her for the recipe which thankfully she was happy to share.

Cantuccini

• 350 gram flour

• 3 eggs

• 200 gram castor sugar

• 2 t.sp. vanilla (or two sachets of vanilla sugar)

• 250 gram nuts and almonds (no peanuts), unsalted and not roasted

• 1 t.sp. baking powder

• 1/2 t.sp. salt

• 1/2 t.sp. baking soda

• 1 table sp. grated orange peel

• 2 table sp. liqueur, f.e. Grand Marnier

Pre-heat the oven to 180°C.

Line a baking tray with baking parchment.

Sift and mix the flour with baking powder, baking soda and salt in a medium sized bowl. In a large bowl, mix the sugar, vanilla, the grated orange peel and the liqueur together with the eggs until slightly foamy.

Combine the dry and the wet ingredients to a heavy, sticky dough. Knead in the nuts.

Shape the dough into two logs and place them on the baking tray. Bake in preheated oven for 20 to 30 minutes, until lightly browned and still a little soft.

Take the logs of the baking tray and allow to cool (minimal 2 hours -- it's important for the logs to be cold enough in order to be able to slice them well!).

Now preheat the oven to 150°C. Cut the logs with a good bread-knife in 1 cm thick slices. Lay on an oven rack and dry for another 8-10 minutes until golden-brown.

You can (try to) keep these cookies in a closed jar for up to 3 to 4 weeks.

xxx Esther