Ingredients
1kg flour (light, not self-raising)
300g butter
600g dark brown sugar
1 litre of water
1 pinch of salt
1 tablespoon bicarbonate of soda
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 pinch of ground clove
Method
1. Beat the brown sugar, butter and spices together in a large dish, and add the water to the mixture.
2. Sieve the bicarbonate of soda and flour over the mixture and blend to get a thick, not too elastic dough, taking care not to over-knead it. If it sticks, cool it for a while.
3. Roll out the dough into pieces and flatten these with a rolling pin.
4. Using a cookie cutter, carefully punch out your desired biscuit shapes.
5. Bake at 175°C – 200°C for around 10 minutes.
6. Allow to cool, then decorate with piped icing, jelly sweets or sugar beads.
The name Bernardo Buontalenti might not mean much to those outside of Florence, but it should. A prestigious Florentine architect and artist favoured by the Medici, he is also widely credited with inventing gelato. This frozen delight is now as synonymous with Italy as pizza and is deeply intertwined with Florence’s heritage. Take a tour of the city’s most celebrated gelaterias, curated by the expert concierge team at Hotel Savoy.
Maestro Salvatore Calabrese and Federico Pavan, Director of Mixology at Brown’s Hotel, discuss the creative process behind Happily Ever After, the Donovan Bar’s new fairytale-inspired cocktail menu, launching on 28th May.
This summer, Masseria Torre Maizza turns up the volume on a cause that needs our attention. Save the Olives, a non-profit organisation championed by Dame Helen Mirren, whose mission is to raise awareness of Xylella fastidiosa, a bacterium devastating Puglia’s olive trees and impacting the local economy and ecosystem. In support, we have devised an incredible calendar of music and art amidst our Masseria’s olive groves – a poignant setting, grounded in the cause.
