Piedmontese polenta biscuits

Name: Piedmontese polenta biscuits
Cook time: 1 h
Yield: about 36
Cuisine: Italian
Ingredients: 250g plain flour; 125g fine polenta; 125g caster sugar; pinch of sea salt; 250g cold, unsalted butter, cubed; 1 egg, plus 1 egg yolk; zest of a lemon; 1 vanilla pod, seeds scraped; 1 tbsp full-cream milk, as needed

Julia Busuttil Nishimura

August 22, 2025

Serve these delicate Italian biscuits with an espresso. William Meppem

Time:30 mins - 1 hourMakes:about 36

Made with polenta, these biscuits, known as paste di meliga, are found all over Italy’s Piedmont region, and are popular with an espresso or for dipping into zabaglione.

They’re lightly scented with lemon and vanilla and I just love their shape and delicacy. If you don’t have a star-shaped nozzle, they can be piped with a plain one. Buy the finest ground polenta you can find.

Ingredients

250g plain flour
125g fine polenta
125g caster sugar
pinch of sea salt
250g cold, unsalted butter, cubed
1 egg, plus 1 egg yolk
zest of a lemon
1 vanilla pod, seeds scraped
1 tbsp full-cream milk, as needed

Method

Step 1
Preheat the oven to 175C fan-forced (195C conventional) and line two baking trays with baking paper and set aside.
Step 2
Sift the flour and polenta into the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Add the sugar and salt and, with the mixer on low, stir for 30 seconds to combine.
Step 3
Add the butter and mix on low until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs (2-3 minutes), then add the egg, egg yolk, lemon zest and vanilla and mix until the mixture forms a soft, smooth dough (1-2 minutes). The mixture needs to be firm enough to hold its shape but soft enough to pipe. To test if it’s the correct consistency, transfer a few tablespoons of dough to a piping bag fitted with a star-shaped nozzle and pipe one biscuit onto the prepared tray into a 5cm round. If it’s too difficult to pipe, add the milk to the dough in the bowl and combine on a low speed.
Step 4
Once the consistency is correct, transfer all the dough to the piping bag and pipe 5cm-round biscuits onto the prepared trays, allowing a few centimetres between each for spreading.
Step 5
Bake in the preheated oven for 12-13 minutes, or until lightly golden. Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely on the trays before transferring to an airtight container, where they’ll keep for up to 4-5 days.

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