Savoiardo Castellano is a traditional sweet of Castel San Pietro Terme.
Research by students of the city’s Bartolomeo Scappi secondary school has revealed that these finger biscuits appeared in great banquets as early as the 17th and 18th centuries. As advertisements in Bologna newspapers testify, Savoiardo Castellano biscuits were already exported all over Italy between the 19th and 20th centuries. The Gardini family produced these biscuits in 1860 on their premises at no. 16 Via Matteotti, Castel San Pietro Terme. There is a story of a letter of thanks for a tin of these Savoiardo Castellano biscuits received as a gift by the Queen Mother, Margherita of Savoy, dated 11 May 1903 and signed by her maid of honour, expressing her goodwill and her pleasure at the quality of the product. The letter also contained a jewel - a brooch - now in the possession of the heirs.