Chef Graziella
Baci di Dama
Piedmont's famous hazelnut cookies, each one small as a walnut and twice as fragile. Two tender domes joined by a whisper of dark chocolate, named for how they resemble lips meeting in a kiss.
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Krumiri di Casale Monferrato
Created by
The curved cornmeal cookies of Casale Monferrato, where butter, sugar, and fine maize flour come together in a crumbly, sandy sweetness that has survived unchanged since 1878.
Pastries & Cookies
Italian, Piedmontese
Comfort Food
Make Ahead
30 min
Active Time
15 min cook•45 min total
YieldAbout 40 cookies
Piedmont does not shout. It is not the cuisine of red sauce and drama. It is butter, hazelnuts, white truffles, and understated elegance. Krumiri belong to this tradition: a cookie that looks modest but reveals its quality in every crumb.
The cornmeal gives these cookies their distinctive sandy texture, somewhere between shortbread and polenta. Fine yellow maize flour, not the coarse grind you use for polenta, creates a delicate granular quality that dissolves on the tongue. The butter must be generous. Piedmont has never been shy with butter, and neither should you be.
You pipe these through a star tip to create ridges that catch the light and crisp in the oven. The curve is traditional, a gentle arc that supposedly echoes a royal mustache. Whether this story is true matters less than the result: a cookie that fits perfectly against a cup of espresso, ready to be dipped.
Domenico Rossi, a pastry chef in the Piedmontese town of Casale Monferrato, created Krumiri in 1878. The curved shape honored the distinctive mustache of Ethiopian King Menelik II, whose visit to Italy had captured popular imagination. The original bakery, Krumiri Rossi, still operates on Via Lanza, producing cookies from the same recipe nearly 150 years later.
The technique, the tradition, and the story behind every dish.
Discover Culinary ExplorerIngredients
unsalted butter
Quantity
200g
softened
granulated sugar
Quantity
150g
large egg yolks
Quantity
3
fine yellow cornmeal
Quantity
150g
all-purpose flour or tipo 00 flour
Quantity
200g
pure vanilla extract
Quantity
1/2 teaspoon
fine sea salt
Quantity
1/4 teaspoon
lemon zest (optional)
Quantity
zest of 1/2 lemon
| Ingredient | Quantity |
|---|---|
| unsalted buttersoftened | 200g |
| granulated sugar | 150g |
| large egg yolks | 3 |
| fine yellow cornmeal | 150g |
| all-purpose flour or tipo 00 flour | 200g |
| pure vanilla extract | 1/2 teaspoon |
| fine sea salt | 1/4 teaspoon |
| lemon zest (optional) | zest of 1/2 lemon |
Equipment Needed
- •Stand mixer or hand mixer
- •Large piping bag
- •Large star piping tip (1M or equivalent)
- •Two baking sheets
- •Parchment paper
- •Wire cooling rack
Instructions
- 1
Cream butter and sugar
In a large bowl, beat the softened butter with the sugar until pale and fluffy, about 3 minutes with a stand mixer or 5 minutes by hand. The mixture should lighten in color and increase in volume. This incorporates air that keeps the cookies tender.
The butter must be properly softened, not melted and not cold. It should yield to gentle pressure but hold its shape. Remove it from the refrigerator one hour before you begin. - 2
Add egg yolks
Add the egg yolks one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add the vanilla extract and lemon zest if using. The mixture may look slightly curdled. This is normal and will correct itself when you add the dry ingredients.
- 3
Combine dry ingredients
In a separate bowl, whisk together the fine cornmeal, flour, and salt. The cornmeal must be fine, the kind labeled farina di mais fioretto or fine polenta. Coarse cornmeal will clog your piping tip and produce a gritty cookie.
- 4
Form the dough
Add the dry ingredients to the butter mixture in three additions, mixing on low speed or stirring by hand until just combined. Do not overmix. The dough should be smooth, pliable, and hold together when pressed. If it feels too soft to pipe, refrigerate for 15 minutes.
- 5
Prepare for piping
Heat the oven to 160°C (325°F). Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Fit a large piping bag with a star tip, size 1M or similar with at least 6 points. The star tip creates the characteristic ridged surface of Krumiri.
If you do not own a piping bag, you may roll the dough into logs and slice them, but this is not the traditional shape. The ridges from the star tip are essential to the texture and appearance. - 6
Pipe the cookies
Fill the piping bag with dough. Pipe 7-centimeter strips onto the prepared baking sheets, curving each one gently into a crescent shape. Leave 3 centimeters between cookies. They spread slightly. The curve should be subtle, like the arc of a smile, not a complete semicircle.
- 7
Bake until golden
Bake for 12 to 15 minutes, rotating the pans halfway through. The cookies are done when the edges turn golden and the tops remain pale yellow. They will feel soft when hot but firm as they cool. Do not overbake. The interior should remain tender.
These cookies go from perfect to burnt in two minutes. Watch them closely after the 10-minute mark. The first batch will teach you your oven. - 8
Cool completely
Let the cookies rest on the baking sheet for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. They are fragile when warm. Handle them gently. The texture improves as they cool, becoming crisp at the edges and sandy throughout.
Chef Tips
- •Fine cornmeal is essential. Look for farina di mais fioretto at Italian grocers, or substitute fine-ground polenta. Bob's Red Mill fine grind cornmeal works adequately. Never use coarse cornmeal or the texture will be wrong.
- •The dough must be at the right consistency to pipe. Too cold and it will crack; too warm and it will not hold the ridges. If struggling, let the dough rest at room temperature for 10 minutes.
- •Store Krumiri in an airtight tin for up to two weeks. They are meant for keeping, for having on hand when someone stops by for coffee. In Casale Monferrato, no home is without them.
- •These cookies are traditional with espresso or Moscato d'Asti, the lightly sweet sparkling wine of Piedmont. The pairing is not accidental.
Advance Preparation
- •The dough can be made one day ahead and refrigerated. Bring to room temperature before piping, or the dough will crack.
- •Baked cookies keep in an airtight container at room temperature for two weeks. They do not require refrigeration.
- •The dough freezes well for up to two months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator before using.
Frequently Asked Questions
Nutrition Information
1 serving (about 17g)
Calories
85 calories
Total Fat
5 g
Saturated Fat
3 g
Trans Fat
0 g
Unsaturated Fat
2 g
Cholesterol
25 mg
Sodium
15 mg
Total Carbohydrates
11 g
Dietary Fiber
0 g
Sugars
4 g
Protein
1 g
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