Imagine a large and particularly neat fried egg with a well-centred extra-large yolk: these are the proportions of the biscotti occhi di bue, bullseye biscuits that sit behind glass-fronted counters in bars all over Italy. Pale pairs of shortbread biscuits stuck together with jam, a hole in the top biscuit exposing a large, smooth, orange eye. Sometimes there will be smaller bullseye biscuits, too, maybe with fluted edges and a jammy dodger-style strawberry heart instead of an eye. Nutella can also be used as a filling. But the most common eyes are big and apricot: a biscuit cyclops for breakfast.
When my son was small, and before the owner sold up to be a music producer, we used to go to a bar on the way home from the train station. I had noticed their biscuits, of course, but never eaten one until my son pleaded, as if his life depended on it, to have one for breakfast. Large for an adult, biscotti occhi di bue are enormous when you are four, overwhelming even, and he held it in front of his face and stared, hypnotised by the jam, all the way home. We were back in the kitchen when, after much staring and poking, he finally bit into his breakfast and discovered it was more biscuit than jam. The biscuit was passed over to me and, unthinking, I ate it with a cup of tea, which was hugely enjoyable, but not the right thing to do, because my son then remembered that his life depended on the biscuit, and he lay on the floor, face down and rigid, in protest. He has never forgotten this, and neither have I, which is why they are now known as jammy thief bullseye biscuits: smaller than those you find in a bar, and with a central hole made using the plastic cap of a milk bottle.
You will need about 100g jam. My preference is apricot or cherry, but most flavours work – the smoother and stickier, the better, so it sets into smooth, glistening eyes and acts like glue, sealing the pairs of biscuits firmly. While soft jam will work, if you wish to make it a bit thicker, pass it through a sieve and let it bubble and reduce in a pan over a medium flame for a few minutes. A word of warning, though, from someone who has turned jam into molten lava on more than one occasion: don’t take your eyes off the jam pan, not even for a second – you want it thickened, not caramelised. Once the jam is reduced, leave it to cool, then, using a knife dipped in hot water, smear it on to the base biscuit. When spreading jam on the bases, leave a 1cm margin around the edge (because the jam will spread), then sandwich with a biscuit that has a hole.
Some people like to dust biscotti occhi di bue with icing sugar before serving. If you do, dust only the edges, so the jam eye shines, unblinking, up at you.
Bullseye biscuits
Prep 20 min
Chill 1 hr +
Cook 12 min
Makes about 15
125g butter
100g icing sugar
1 egg yolk
1 tsp vanilla essence (optional)
250g “00” flour
A pinch of salt
A splash of milk (optional)
100g jam of your choice
Icing sugar, for dusting (optional)
In a bowl, using an electric whisk or wooden spoon, beat together the butter and icing sugar until light and fluffy. Add the egg yolk and vanilla if you are using it, and beat again, before adding the flour and salt and bringing everything together into soft dough. Add a little milk if dough seems to need it. Wrap the dough and chill in the fridge for at least an hour.
Heat the oven to 180C (160C fan)/350F/gas 4 and prepare a baking tray lined with parchment. Working on a lightly floured board, roll the dough until about 3-4mm thick (no more), then use a 6-8cm cutter to form round biscuits. Count them (you should have about 30), then using a smaller cutter or bottle top, remove the centre from half of the rounds. Transfer all of the rounds to the baking tray – you might need to work in batches – and bake for 12 minutes or until lightly golden.
Leave the biscuits to cool completely, before spreading jam on the bases, leaving a 1cm margin as the jam will spread. Sandwich each jammy round with a biscuit with an “eye”. If you wish, dust with icing sugar before serving.
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