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Home » Recipes » Cookies » Sicilian Sesame Seed Cookies

Sicilian Sesame Seed Cookies

August 16, 2017 By Neriz 10 Comments

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A classic Italian treat! Covered with sesame seeds, these easy-to-make ‘Sicilian Sesame Seed Cookies‘ will surely become one of your favorites!

Overhead image of a tray of Sicilian Sesame Seed Cookies (Biscotti Regina), ready for serving

These authentic Italian cookies are so easy to make.  Biscotti Regina as they’re originally called, Sicilian sesame seed cookies are great for snack, dessert or with a shot of espresso for breakfast.

Although, I’ve never really seen the Sicilians have them for breakfast… But whatever works for you right?

Here in Stockholm, I like having them with my morning coffee. (I wonder if the place makes a difference? 🙂 ).

HOW TO MAKE BISCOTTI REGINA

Collage of images showing the step by step process on how to make Sicilian Sesame Seed Cookies (Biscotti Regina), first part.

CAN I CHANGE THE SHAPE OF THESE SICILIAN COOKIES?

Don’t worry about the shape, when you make these Italian sesame cookies. You can shape them any way you want.  The first one I had in Taormina had round corners and almost oblong in shape – and then I saw them in small rectangular shape in Palermo.

For me, this is how I want them to look like — and then they’re crunchy on the outside and soft in the inside. Yep, EXACTLY how I like them.

CAN I ADD OTHER FLAVORINGS IN THESE ITALIAN SESAME COOKIES?

A teaspoon of vanilla extract (or any liquor), if you want. I prefer to just use lemon zest – I like the simplicity of the whole thing, the subtleness of the lemon inside the cookie and the crunch and aroma of the sesame seeds outside.

Collage of images showing the step by step process on how to make Sicilian Sesame Seed Cookies (Biscotti Regina), second part.

HOW LONG CAN I STORE THESE SICILIAN COOKIES?

They can be stored for a couple of weeks.  So, if you’re like me, make twice this recipe and store them in a tight container.  Now that I think of it, why do I even bother? They are so easy to make anyway! 🙂

HELPFUL TIPS ON MAKING BISCOTTI REGINA:

  • Make sure your butter is chilled. You need it to get that ‘sandy’ texture for the dough.
  • If you have a sweet tooth, adjust the sugar from ¼ cup to 1/3 cup. (Sorry, I just prefer them not to be too sweet.)
  • You do not need a food processor to do this. The base of these cookies is what’s known as ‘Pasta Frolla’ in Italian cuisine, so using a fork will be just fine.

A closer shot of Sesame Seed Cookies highlighting the crunchy sesame seeds|foodandjourneys.net

WHAT TO SERVE WITH ITALIAN SESAME COOKIES?

We like having them with coffee, tea or wine (for dessert). But to be honest, I think it would be great with any beverage.  Try them yourself! 🙂

IF YOU WANT MORE COOKIE IDEAS, THEN CHECK OUT MY COOKIES COLLECTION!

FOR OTHER SICILIAN RECIPES, CHECK OUT MY OTHER POSTS –

  • Sicilian Brioche
  • Panelle (Chickpea Fritters)
  • Pasta alla Norma
  • Arancini Siciliani
  • Watermelon Jelly (Gelo di Anguria)

 

5 from 5 votes
Sicilian Sesame Seed Cookies PIC2
Print
Sicilian Sesame Seeds Cookies
Prep Time
30 mins
Cook Time
30 mins
Total Time
1 hr
 

Also known as 'Biscotti Regina', these Italian cookies are so easy to make! Great with coffee, tea or even with your favorite wine! (VIDEO ABOVE)

Course: Dessert
Cuisine: Italian
Servings: 16
Calories: 218 kcal
Author: Neriz
Ingredients
  • 350 grams flour, about 2 & 1/3 cups
  • 75 grams sugar, about 1/4 cup
  • 1 stick butter, (113 grams), unsalted, chilled & cut into cubes
  • 3 eggs, separated
  • 2 tbsp milk
  • 1 tbsp honey
  • 1/2 lemon, grated zest
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 1 cup sesame seeds
Instructions
  1. Combine flour, sugar and butter either by hand or by using a food processor. Mix until it resembles the texture of sand.

  2. Add egg yolks, milk, honey, lemon zest and salt. Mix thoroughly.

  3. Form dough into a ball, cover with plastic and chill in the refrigerator for 30 to 60 minutes.

  4. Preheat oven to 180 degrees-C (350 degrees-F).

  5. Divide dough into four equal parts. Further divide each part into three small bits. Flatten each bit and form an almost rectangular shape of 1-cm thick. (I usually make mine about 1 ½ inch wide and 2-inches long.)

  6. Add four tbsp. of water to the egg whites and mix.  
  7. Dip each piece of formed cookie into the egg white mix and then roll them in the sesame seeds.

  8. Place in a baking pan lined with a baking sheet.

  9. Bake in the oven for 25 to 30 minutes. Set aside to cool.

  10. Serve.

Recipe Notes

NOTE:  This recipe yields 16-regular sized cookies.  However, since I prefer them slightly bigger (as you can see in the images and video), I normally make 10 cookies from this same recipe.

 

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Last Updated on September 2, 2019

Filed Under: Cookies, Popular Posts Tagged With: cookies, italian recipes, italian sweets

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Allison - Celebrating Sweets says

    March 3, 2018 at 2:04 pm

    5 stars
    My father in law makes something similar to this. I can’t wait to try your recipe! They look great!

    Reply
  2. Julia says

    March 3, 2018 at 2:36 pm

    5 stars
    What? I’ve been to Taormina and Palermo but never got to taste these! I did taste Limoncello though. 🙂 Can’t wait to try them!

    Reply
  3. Hannah says

    March 3, 2018 at 2:56 pm

    5 stars
    I love this kind of cookies, I would eat them for breakfast and it goes so well with coffee, it’s just a perfect snack in the morning. 🙂

    Reply
  4. Noor Fatima says

    March 3, 2018 at 3:16 pm

    5 stars
    I used to buy these from a local bakery in Saudi Arabia years ago and that bakery disappeared. So glad I have a recipe to make them at home now. I can’t wait to taste them again…invokes so many memories. Cant thank you enough for sharing this recipe.

    Reply
  5. Liz @ I Heart Vegetables says

    March 3, 2018 at 3:18 pm

    5 stars
    Oh cool! I’ve never cooked with sesame seeds before but these cookies sound really good!

    Reply
  6. Kim says

    September 12, 2018 at 8:22 pm

    SOUNDS. GOOD. I LOVE SESAME. SEEDS. AND I LOVE COOKIES. YUMMMMMM!!!!!!

    Reply
  7. jennifer says

    December 9, 2018 at 7:08 pm

    I noticed other recipes have baking powder – is this an error in the recipe?

    Reply
    • Neriz says

      March 16, 2019 at 7:05 am

      Thanks for your comment Jennifer — no, it’s not an error. 🙂

      Some recipes use baking powder because the base for this cookie is what is commonly known in Italian as Pasta Frolla (Sweet pastry dough). That’s got baking powder in it to add more crunch to the pastry. I have that post here if you want to check it out (https://foodandjourneys.net/how-to-make-pasta-frolla/).

      I intentionally do not use baking powder when I make these cookies because I want to get the crunch purely from the sesame seeds. Feel free to add baking powder if you want to try it!

      Reply
  8. Deborah says

    March 13, 2019 at 2:11 am

    Hello!
    Can I use a hand blender instead of a food processor?
    thanks

    Reply
    • Neriz says

      March 16, 2019 at 7:01 am

      That’s gonna be a bit difficult Deborah since it’s not a soft dough. If you don’t have a food processor, you can just use your hands and a fork.

      Check out my other post on https://foodandjourneys.net/how-to-make-pasta-frolla/. This is the same cookie base used, without baking powder — and I only used fork in making it. 🙂

      Reply

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I’m Neriz and this is my blog. I am originally from Manila, Philippines, but I have been living in Stockholm for years. I love cooking, traveling, and reading, not necessarily in that order, but it all depends on the time of the day, and the day of the week ;-) Learn more >>

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