There is a time and place for cookies that are fancy, full of swoops and swirls, formed into twists or cutouts, and adorned with sprinkles, frostings, glazes, and everything that’s bling.

Other times, you crave a cookie that’s more wholesome, homespun, and has the confidence to just speak for itself.

“Cantuccioni” are that type of cookie. Hailing from Tuscany, they are like biscotti — but baked only once, not twice — so they are much more tender.

The recipe is from “Italian Cookies” (Gibbs Smith), of which I received a review copy

It was written by Domenica Marchetti, a veteran cookbook writer on all things Italian, who is also a food writer and former newspaper reporter with a master’s degree in journalism from Columbia University. She splits her time between Abruzzo, Italy, from where her family hails, and Virginia.

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