🇮🇹 Italian · Dessert
🍪 Mostaccioli Calabresi
Mostaccioli
Dense, spiced honey cookies from Calabria, shaped into decorative diamonds or figures and finished with a chocolate or sugar glaze — a traditional feature of Christmas and wedding tables.
Mostaccioli's spice blend, often including cinnamon, cloves, and citrus, along with a generous amount of honey, gives these cookies a dense, deeply flavored character that keeps exceptionally well, making them ideal for the extended holiday season.
Ingredients
Equipment: Mixing bowl, Rolling pin, Cookie cutters, Baking sheet
- 400 g (3 cups) 00 flour
- 150 g (½ cup) honey
- 80 g (¼ cup) granulated sugar
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- ¼ tsp ground cloves
- Zest of 1 orange
- 5 g (1 tsp) baking soda
- 80 ml (⅓ cup) warm water
- 80 g (⅓ cup) unsalted butter, softened (or olive oil for a dairy-free version)
- 100 g (3.5 oz) dark chocolate, melted, for glazing
Method
- Warm the honey gently until fluid, then combine with the sugar, cinnamon, cloves, and orange zest.
- Dissolve the baking soda in the warm water and add to the honey mixture.
- Add the butter or oil and gradually work in the flour to form a firm, smooth dough.
- Rest the dough, covered, for 30 minutes.
- Roll out to about 1cm thickness and cut into diamond shapes or other traditional figures.
- Arrange on a lined baking sheet and bake at 180°C (350°F) for 15–18 minutes until firm and lightly golden.
- Cool completely, then dip the tops in melted chocolate, letting the excess drip off.
- Let the chocolate set completely before serving or storing.
Chef Tips
- Warming the honey first makes it much easier to incorporate smoothly into the dough.
- These cookies are meant to be dense and firm rather than light and airy — that texture is traditional.
- They keep exceptionally well and often taste even better a few days after baking, once the spices have settled in.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
- Rolling the dough too thin, losing the characteristic dense, chewy bite.
- Rushing the chocolate glaze, resulting in an uneven coating.
- Overbaking, which can make the cookies too hard rather than pleasantly dense.
Nutrition (per serving)
Health Benefits
- Honey provides natural sweetness with some antioxidant compounds compared to refined sugar alone.
Cultural Note
Mostaccioli have deep roots across southern Italy, particularly in Calabria, where they remain a fixture of Christmas baking and traditional wedding celebrations.
Storage & Serving
Storage: Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 weeks.
Reheating: Not applicable.
Serve with: Espresso, A glass of sweet wine