Canestrelli Cookies

Canestrelli cookies have an extra rich and delicate texture with the addition of cooked egg yolks. Learn how to make your own at home!

The secret indredient: cooked egg yolks.

Story by Cappy Tosetti

MOST COOKS HAVE something up their sleeve when preparing treats from the kitchen — little tricks or hints handed down from a grandmother, favorite aunt, or a cookbook from long ago. It’s what keeps family and friends clamoring for more!

Hardboiled egg yolks are one element that helps add extra-rich flavor and texture to many baked goods when pressed through a sieve and added to the ingredients. They prevent too much gluten (toughness) from developing without weighing down the batter, adding volume, and acting as an emulsifier of liquid and fats that holds in moisture with a velvety texture that’s tender and rich in flavor and color.

Gluten is essential in giving baked goods structure, but too much results in a chewy texture that one wants when making pizza dough, muffins, or quick breads. But, when desiring a light and delicate melt-in-your-mouth recipe for cakes, cookies, shortbread, biscuits, cornbread, and cake doughnuts. Try adding cooked and cooled egg yolks to the mixture.

One wonders how this clever idea first occurred, but research concludes that it probably happened when folks long ago thought up ways to use all the eggs their chickens produced daily. Hard-boiled eggs are a quick and easy snack for breakfast or lunch boxes, but some picky eaters will only nibble on the cooked egg white, leaving or discarding the yellow yolk. Wasting food was never a luxury, so innovative mothers and others in the kitchen came up with ways to use this nutritious staple in their recipes.

One cookbook calls for adding chopped or finely sieved egg yolks to gravy, giving it extra flavor and composition. Today’s cooks find a variety of uses for the humble egg yolk, including deviled eggs, a favorite dish at picnics and potluck suppers. Other uses include chopping and crumbling the yolks into tuna or macaroni salad, adding a few tablespoons to stews, spaghetti or Bolognese sauce, and other dishes with a chunky texture.

Many individuals like to smash and mix egg yolks into homemade or store-bought salad dressings, combining them with red wine vinegar, garlic, oil, and other seasonings. It’s also easy and nutritious to add finely chopped or sieved yolks to smoothies and puréed baby foods, and they can also add color, flavor, and texture when topping a salad or bowl of soup. There’s no end to creativity in the kitchen!

Canestrelli Cookies

Translated in English as “Little Baskets,” this traditional buttery Italian shortbread cookie originated in the northern region of the country during the Middle Ages. It’s often given as a gift at weddings and other celebrations and is a favorite treat at the holidays and religious feasts. There’s a mystery in the name, but many believe it derives from the word “canestro,” a small woven straw basket used for cooling the cookies after baking.

The traditional shape of canestrelli cookies is a six-petaled flower with a hole in the middle, usually made with a straw or a small, round cookie cutter before baking. As is often the case when reviewing recipes, there are slightly different versions of how many egg yolks to use. Some call for two, while other recipes suggest three or four. Flour is another ingredient with different measurements — some suggest 1 cup, while others list it as 1½ cups. Some call for vanilla extract or slicing and scraping a fresh vanilla bean into the mixture. It’s a good idea to explore and try a variety of recipes online, or if one has access to an Italian cookbook.

Here’s a traditional Canestrelli cookies recipe that’s easy to prepare.

INGREDIENTS

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup confectioners’ sugar
• 3/4 cup cornstarch
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 3 hardboiled egg yolks — cooked and pressed through a finely woven mesh sieve.
• 6-1/2 ounces (13 tablespoons) butter. Do not substitute! Cold butter is best. This helps prevent the cookies from spreading in the oven.
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• Extra confectioners’ sugar for dusting after baking.

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Cook and cool the egg yolks. Press them through the sieve.
2. With an electric mixer, combine the butter and confectioner’s sugar. Mix until well combined.
3. Add salt and vanilla.
4. Add the egg yolks to the butter and sugar mixture.
5. Add the flour and cornstarch to the butter mix, taking care not to overmix and warm the dough.
6. Form the dough into a ball and place in plastic wrap or parchment paper.
7. Let cool in the refrigerator for at least an hour.
8. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.
9. Roll out the dough between the plastic wrap or parchment paper to a thickness of 3/4 inch.
10. Cut with a flower-shaped cookie cutter. If a hole isn’t in the middle, use a straw or a cap from a marker, inserting a bit of plastic wrap inside. This prevents any sticking to the dough.
11. Place the cookie on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, spacing two inches apart.
12. Bake for 18 to 20 minutes until a pale golden color. It’s best to watch closely, making sure not to burn the edges.
13. Let the finished cookies cool for approximately five minutes on the baking sheet before transferring to a wire rack to thoroughly cool.
14. Dust with the remaining confectioners’ sugar.
15. Some individuals like to frost the cookies with a simple glaze consisting of 2 cups of confectioner’s sugar mixed with 3 tablespoons water or milk. -Traditionally in Italy, the delicious cookies are simply dusted with confectioner’s sugar.
16. Store in an airtight container for a week or refrigerate for 10 days. They can also be stored in the freezer for up to three months, allowing them to return to room temperature before serving.

Is it best to use granulated or confectioners’ sugar when making cookies and shortbread recipes? It’s a personal choice. Confectioners’ sugar is technically the same as granulated, except it’s pulverized into a fine powder, giving it a fine and almost chalky texture.

Eggs to the Rescue

Like uncooked eggs in a recipe, hardboiled yolks can raise the bar when serving cookies and other baked goods for dessert and special occasions. Not only do they enhance the flavor and texture of one’s creation, but they also provide a valuable source of protein and 13 essential vitamins and minerals, along with omega-3 fatty acids and antioxidants.
So, remember the humble cooked egg yolk when baking a batch of Canestrelli or other cookies this winter and holiday season. Be prepared for rave reviews when friends and family ask for more. Why not stop and enjoy some yourself with a cup of cocoa or a spot of tea? It’s a treat that brightens any day.
As they say in Italy … Buon Appetito!

CAPPY TOSETTI lives in Asheville, North Carolina with her three rescue dogs that help her with Happy with Cappy Pet Sitting. She’s putting things in motion to someday crisscross the country in a vintage travel trailer visiting draft horse and goat farms. cappyt@att.net

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Originally published in the Feb/Mar 2024 issue of Backyard Poultry magazine, and regularly vetted for accuracy.