I know you asked for an Italian cookie - but my Jewish cookbook has a baked pastry that is very similar - it's called Taiglach (Tayg - lock). This recipe is from a cookbook called "We Remember Bubba!"

Combine flour, baking powder and salt; mix thoroughly. Add oil and eggs. Knead to make a soft dough. Roll and twist dough into a rope formation. (1/4" in diameter); cut into small, irregular pieces. Place pieces of dough on an ungreased cookie sheet and bake at 350* for about 20 minutes, or until lightly golden. Cool.

In a large saucepan, combine brown sugar with ginger, nutmeg and honey; cook to hard-crack stage. Drop the pieces of baked dough into the honey mixture; stir and cook 5 minutes longer. Add nuts; stir and cook an additional 3 - 5 minutes.

Turn mixture out onto a wet surface and allow to cool until easy to handle.

With moistened hands, mound taiglach on a tray (in a pyramid), and cool.