We called them fennel biscuits or 'biscotti con finocchio'.
I get the feeling that fennel biscuits come from a very ancient recipe which has been adapted all throughout Italy for generations (maybe I'm speculating).
Today, some of the family still living in Italy run their own biscuit factory which sells fennel biscuits of course. Nonna remembers the time when all fennel biscuits were handmade and served at weddings with a glass of homemade wine.
When I was diagnosed with a wheat intolerance at the age of eight, fennel biscuits were off the diet (boohoo!).
But I re-discovered them again this year.
My stomach lets me eat wheat again now, so I asked Nonna if we could make another batch of fennel biscuits for the cookbook.
When I bit into my first fennel biscuit of the last 13 years, the crunch brought me right back to where I'd left off - but I have to be careful... these things are addictive!
