Fratelli Lunardi have been baking in Quarrata since 1966
Fratelli Lunardi is a Tuscan bakery in Quarrata near Pistoia. What began in 1966 as a village bakery with a small shop is now run by brothers Massimiliano and Riccardo Lunardi. Their secret is the butter in the cantuccio, which transforms the rock-hard classic into a crumbly pastry.
Fratelli Lunardi stands for Tuscan biscotti that you can bite into without having to soak them first. The bakery in Quarrata, a small town in the province of Pistoia, has been operating at the same address since 1966 and still makes both bread and sweets to this day. A whole family of cookies has emerged from the combination of an old recipe and a generous portion of butter, along with panettone, schiacciata, and savory pastries.
1966, a village bakery with a small shop
The parents of the two brothers opened a bakery with an attached grocery store in Quarrata in 1966. Bread, savory baked goods, and a little bit of sweets.
Massimiliano and Riccardo grew up among flour sacks and bread shelves, with the smell of freshly baked goods as the soundtrack of their day. Those who get used to this smell can no longer live without it later, is how Massimiliano and Riccardo describe the beginning of their journey in their own catalog. At some point, they took over their parents' bakery and put their own name above it.
The oven has remained at the same address. Over the years, the bread business became a cookie bakery—without giving up the bread—and a regional craft turned into a brand found in London and Munich. Sixty years later, it is still the same business, just with a different lead role.
Two shops are now part of it, one in Quarrata and one outside in Bottegone near Pistoia. The entire range is available there side by side: bread and cookies, panettone during the season, and a small selection of wines. In its core, Fratelli Lunardi has remained what it was back in 1966: a local shop, just with a much larger reach.
From cantucci to panettone
The assortment is organized around a single shape, the diagonally sliced cookie, and branches out from there into various types.
At the center are the Cantucci Toscani IGP with whole unpeeled almonds, the protected classic. Beside them are the Biscotti con Cioccolato with coarse dark chunks, simply called the king of chocolate cookies in-house, which are also available in a 400-gram bag. Lighter and fruitier are the Biscotti con Limone with candied lemon.
The house also bakes varieties with chocolate and orange, with hazelnut, and a version with fruits and seeds, containing apricot, cranberry, raisin, coconut, oats, as well as pumpkin and sunflower seeds. For catering, there are 500-gram loose bags, and for gifts, boxes starting from 100 grams. The smallest format is called I Du' Biscotti and contains exactly two chocolate cookies, intended for a handbag or glove compartment.
For Christmas, panettone is added to the selection in three styles. The Glassato features a glaze made of Piedmontese IGP hazelnuts, whole almonds, and pearl sugar. The Milano type is the classic version with candied fruit and raisins, and the newest member of the group is the chocolate panettone with hand-cut chocolate flakes and a layer of gianduia.
Butter, craftsmanship, and slowly candied peels
The recipe follows the old Tuscan pattern of flour, sugar, eggs, and honey, supplemented by a generous portion of butter.
They returned to the tradition that provided the original cantucci recipe and added butter to it so that the cookies would become soft, says Paola Stabilini, who manages the house's sales. That is exactly the difference you notice with the first bite. The cookie breaks instead of resisting.
The filoncini—the elongated dough strands—are shaped by hand, go into the oven, and are sliced diagonally while still hot. This is where the name "cantuccio" comes from; in Tuscan, it refers to the corner piece, the end slice of the loaf. While the company has invested in modern technology, they say that their greatest treasure remains their hands.
The fruit pieces are also created slowly. They are candied in open vats, and instead of thin zest, the house uses the thick peel because only this remains soft after candying. For the panettone, the family works with a sourdough starter that has been fed for over 80 years, without any preservatives or acceleration. Small, slow machines are part of this philosophy because flour and dough cannot be rushed.
The packaging also follows the same concept. The Fratelli Lunardi bags are made of paper, the gift boxes of cardboard—stackable and without unnecessary frills.
An IGP seal and a world championship final
The almond cantucci bear the Protected Geographical Indication (PGI) "Cantucci Toscani IGP," which the European Union registered on January 26, 2016.
The regulations behind it are strict and concise. Whole, natural almonds with a share of at least 20 percent, plus flour, sugar, eggs, butter, and honey, baked as a loaf and sliced diagonally while hot. This is monitored by a body approved by the Italian Ministry of Agriculture, and only businesses within Tuscany are allowed to use the name.
The house's panettone has reached the final of the Panettone World Championship several times. This is remarkable for a bakery that originates from bread-making rather than pastry-making. Today, the cookies are sold at Harrods and Selfridges in London, at La Rinascente in Milan, and at Käfer in Munich.
The visual identity was created by Betty Soldi, a calligrapher from Florence. The collaboration began with hand-drawn digits for a large English order, which turned into the entire family of bags as Betty Soldi continues to design them for the house to this day. Youthful, colorful, and free of Tuscan clichés.
How best to start
If you aren't familiar with the brand yet, it makes sense to start with the classic and then work your way toward the darker varieties.
The Cantucci Toscani IGP show what it's all about: crispy, buttery, almondy, with whole nuts in the break. They belong with an espresso after a meal, a dessert wine, or in a café au lait in the morning. The Biscotti con Cioccolato are the counterpart: almost black, with coarse chunks and a hint of Italian orange oil.
For an afternoon with tea, the lemon version is a closer match; for the weeks leading up to Christmas, the large bag is best. A small house secret on the side: at room temperature, you will taste much more of all the varieties; when cold from the pantry, cocoa and fruit flavors remain muted.
Fratelli Lunardi's bags are perfect as gifts without needing anything else, as the illustrated paper already serves as packaging. If you are giving them as a gift, it is best to combine two varieties—one light and one dark—so the recipient has a comparison at home. And if you want to keep what you bought for yourself, just go for the large bag.
Those who want to experience the stricter school of thought can find it at Antonio Mattei in Prato, where they have been baking completely without butter since 1858. A direct comparison is worth it, as both houses interpret the same pastry in completely different ways. Other classics can be found in our Sweet Pastries and Italian Assortment collections. You can see what is currently in stock in the grid below.
