Made with golden cornmeal, toasted almonds and flecks of bright orange zest, this rich and crunchy Sbrisolona (Italian crumble cookie) is the perfect match for dunking in coffee or creamy zabaglione. Bake time 30 minutes. Easily serves 6-8.
I’m always on the hunt for intriguing Italian cookie recipes, and this one caught my attention because it’s one giant crumble cookie! I’ve never heard of Sbrisolona before (I can barely pronounce it) until I learned about it Food & Wine magazine – the Italian issue.
The dough is mixed together by hand and loosely packed into a springform pan (a springform pan!). Once baked, it’s broken into rustic pieces and served with coffee. If you like crumble toppings on anything, you will love Sbrisolona.
Heads up: this particular version calls for orange zest, although it’s absolutely fine without it. I’ve made it both ways.
How To Make Sbrisolona (Step-By-Step Recipe)
Step 1: Prep & Toast Your Almonds
To Start: Preheat your oven to 350 F and coat a 9-inch springform pan with butter. A regular cake pan is fine too, as long as you line it with parchment paper first. Then, lightly toast and chop the almonds into chunky pieces.
Step 2: Prepare The Components
Now, set up (3) separate bowls:
- Egg yolk, orange zest (if using), almond and vanilla extract.
- Granulated sugar and brown sugar.
- Flour, cornmeal and salt together.
Step 3: Make The Dough
Add cubed butter to the cornmeal/flour mixture and rub it together to make coarse crumbs. You can do this with a pastry cutter or with your fingertips.
Add the sugar mixture, followed by the chopped almonds, and then pour the egg mixture over the top (this is why your set up your bowls in Step 2. It will go fast!). Gently mix it with your hands to form a crumbly dough.
Step 4: Assemble
Loosely press the dough into your prepared pan. The key is to really do it loosely! You don’t want to press down like you’re making shortbread sandcastle. The former technique ensures a light and crumbly cookie with just the right amount of crunch.
Step 5: Bake the Cookie
Now, you’ll bake it for ~25-30 minutes or until golden. How lovely does that look?! It’s really that simple.
Step 6: Cool & Slice
The hardest part is waiting for this cookie to cool completely before breaking it into pieces. Plan on 1 hour or more. From experience, I know it’s cooled enough when the cookie breaks with a satisfying “snap” to the ear!
Food Styling & Photography: Saltwater Studios.
By signing up, you agree to receive emails from The Clever Carrot. Unsubscribe at any time.
Sbrisolona (Crunchy Italian Crumble Cookie)
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Total Time: 45 minutes
- Yield: Serves 6
- Category: Italian Cookies
- Method: oven-Baked
- Cuisine: Italian
- Diet: Vegetarian
Description
Made with golden cornmeal, toasted almonds and flecks of bright orange zest, this rich and crunchy Sbrisolona (Italian crumble cookie) is the perfect match for dunking in coffee or creamy zabaglione. The dough is pressed into a pan, baked, and broken into rustic pieces to share all around. It’s ideal for dunking in coffee or creamy zabaglione. Recipe adapted from Suzanne Goin via Food & Wine.
Ingredients
- 7 tbsp. cold, salted butter cut into 1/2-inch pieces, plus more for coating the pan (Kerry Gold)
- 2/3–3/4 cup whole almonds (skin on), plus more for decoration
- 1 large egg yolk
- 1 tbsp. loosely packed orange zest (optional)
- 1/2 tsp. almond extract
- 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
- 1/3 cup granulated sugar
- 3 tbsp. light brown sugar
- 1 cup + 2 tbsp all purpose flour
- 6 tbsp. fine yellow cornmeal
- Pinch of fine salt
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350 F. Coat a 9-inch spring form pan (or fluted tart pan with removable bottom) with butter.
- Spread almonds onto a baking sheet. Bake for 6-7 minutes, or until very lightly toasted (they will continue to toast during the final bake). Cool for 15 minutes. Rough chop into pieces: small, medium and large-ish pieces are fine.
- Whisk the egg yolk, orange zest (if using), almond extract and vanilla extract in a small bowl; set aside.
- Mix granulated sugar and brown sugar in a small bowl; seat aside.
- Whisk flour, cornmeal, and salt in a large mixing bowl; set aside.
- Using a pastry cutter, cut butter into the flour mixture. Or, rub the butter and flour between your fingers until the texture resembles coarse meal.
- Add the sugar mixture and chopped almonds to the flour bowl.
- Pour the egg yolk mixture over the top. Using your hands, gently work it into the flour. The dough should be crumbly, not sticky, and not-too-dry.
- Loosely pack the crumbles into your prepared pan. Be mindful how you do it: you want the surface to look crumbly and rustic, not packed down tight like you’re making a sandcastle! The final texture will be more flaky and tender too. I also use this time to re-arrange some of the almond pieces on top, adding extra if needed to make it look nice.
- Bake on the center rack for ~25-30 minutes or until golden brown.
- Transfer pan to a wire rack, and let cool completely for 1+ hours. Then, remove the sides of the pan to release the tart.
- Break into large pieces and arrange on a plate to serve.
Artisan Sourdough Made Simple
A beginner’s guide to delicious hand-crafted bread with minimal kneading.
Buy now