Pignoli

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A dessert featuring a blend of almond paste and sugar, often topped with toasted pine nuts, commonly found in Italian sweets
2. A confection that showcases a chewy consistency and a distinctive nutty taste, typically adorned with pine nuts and enjoyed on special occasions
3. A type of Italian pastry that combines sweet almond paste with sugar, typically garnished with toasted pine nuts and served in various celebrations

Etymology: Pignoli are the pine nut cookies that bakers in Italy and America make by pressing pine nuts into a chewy almond-based dough. The name is simply the Italian word for pine nuts, "pinoli," with an extra letter added to the end. The "-i" of the plural form was apparently given a stronger sound, so pinoli became pignoli. The odd spelling may also have a second source. Italian "pignoli" also means "fussy people," and the cookie's name may have been influenced by that word, though this is only a possibility. Either way, the sweet is named for its most distinctive ingredient, the pine nut, which is pressed into its top and gives the cookie its nutty flavor.