Taralli are simple, buttery, traditional Italian cookies, often made for Easter, reminiscent of scones and, when unglazed, perfect for a not-too-sweet breakfast or cocktail cookie.
In my family, these cookies have always simply been called "Mom's Italian cookies" and they were always made for Easter (and sometimes Christmas). It was years before I realized that a) they were a traditional Italian cookie that other Italian families
besides ours knew about and b) they had a name:
taralli (although there are umpteen variations on how to spell it).
They are very buttery, cakey cookies, simple to make and amazingly delicious in their simplicity. This is a recipe that lets the good, natural taste of butter really shine through (I have since seen other recipes for taralli that call for almond or lemon extract, but I prefer this simple buttery taste).
They don't have much sugar in them, so they are not very sweet. In fact, I prefer to eat them for breakfast, as they are almost more like a scone than a cookie. Similarly, they make a great cocktail cookie or afternoon tea cookie.
However, if you have a sweeter sweet tooth than I, you can certainly ice them. Growing up, we always iced them, with a simple glaze made from confectioners sugar, moistened with a little lemon juice and milk -- just enough to make a thick liquid to spoon over the cooled cookies. And, as they were Easter cookies, we added a drop or two food coloring to some of the glaze to make them pastel shades of pink, green and yellow, as well as white.
