 Cat tongues: biscuits (top),milk chocolate bars (bottom). | |
| Alternative names | Ladyfinger |
|---|---|
| Type | Biscuit orchocolate bar |
| Course | Dessert |
| Place of origin | France (biscuits),Austria (chocolate bars) |
| Region or state | Worldwide |
Acat tongue is a small biscuit (cookie) orchocolate bar available in a number ofEuropean,Asian, andSouth American countries. The name comes from the fact that the biscuits are long and flat, somewhat like a cat's tongue.[1][2][3]
They are known locally askočičí jazýčky (Czech),Kattentong (Dutch),[4]kocie języczki (Polish),langue de chat (French),Katzenzungenⓘ (German),lingua di gatto (Italian),língua de gato (Portuguese),lengua de gato (Spanish),macskanyelv (Hungarian),limbă de pisică (Romanian) orlidah kucing (Indonesian).
Cat's tongue cookies are sweet, thin, and crunchy.[1][5]The original recipe most likely comes from 17th centuryFrance.[6][7]Egg white,wheat flour,sugar,butter andvanilla are common ingredients with chocolate, citrus, and spices used in some recipes.[1][8]
In European cuisine they are prepared with aganache, cream or jam filling, and sandwiched together.[1][9] They are sometimes dipped in chocolate as part of their preparation.[9] In France, the cookie is often served with sorbet or ice cream.[9] In theCanary Islands, cat's tongue cookies are served withbienmesabe, a dessert dish.[10]
A cat's tonguemold pan may be used in their preparation, in which cookie dough is placed and then baked.[1] In French, this pan is known aslangue-de-chat.[1] This pan is also used in the preparation ofladyfingers andéclairs.[1] The mold is also referred to as a cat's tongue plaque.[11]
In Japan, langue de chat (ラング・ド・シャ,rangu do sha) are often circular or square and are ingredients in such confections asShiroi Koibito.[12][13]
They are produced frommilk chocolate,dark chocolate andwhite chocolate.[14]
The first cat tongue (Macskanyelv) was made inBudapest by the Swiss-born Hungarian patissierEmil Gerbeaud in the late 1880s.[15] The delicacy is still produced by Szerencsi and other companies such as Sweetness and Szamos. It is considered an authenticHungarian sweet.[16]
