Almond Anise Biscotti

One of my colleagues recently did me a huge favor at work and as a thank you I wanted to bake something to show my appreciation.  I vaguely recalled her mention in passing that she loved a good biscotti so that's what I set out to make.  Lucky for me I'd been hankering for an excuse to make these Almond Anise Biscotti I saw posted on Serious Eats a few weeks ago.  The recipe comes from Stella Parks who is one of my baking Yodas.  I seriously love everything she makes!  

Anise is not a spice I normally gravitate towards in baking but in this case the hint of licorice flavor it provides to the biscotti is spot on - just subtle enough and not overpowering.  A technique in this recipe that I'm definitely going to steal going forward is how the biscotti is shaped.  The dough is rolled in to a log that extends to the full length of a half sheet pan.  Doing this I think helps to ensure even thickness in the baked cookie. 

To gild the lily even further I ended up dipping some of the biscotti in bittersweet chocolate.  I tried tempering the chocolate using the seeding method but I'm not too convinced of how they turned out.  They still taste great though!

Mandelbrot

I'm a fan of anything that isn't too sweet and these yummy Mandelbrot fit the bill.  These Jewish cookies are the perfect snack and a great accompaniment to a cup of coffee or tea.  If you haven't heard of mandelbrot before they are very similar to Italian biscotti, except they're less likely to break your teeth!  

I found the recipe for these cookies on the blog, Goddess of Bakedom, from Sarabeth Levine.  She of her namesake jams, preserves and East Coast restaurants.   The literal translation of mandelbrot is "almond bread", but Sarabeth's version doesn't contain any nuts at all.   Rather, she fills her cookies with jam, which I think is a fantastic interpretation.  The dough can also be used to make another favorite Jewish cookie of mine, hamantaschen.  

I think my sugar-fearing relatives will definitely like these cookies.  They're going to be added to the list of holiday cookies I'm making this year.

TWD Hazelnut Biscotti

I discovered Nutella when I was living in France as an exchange student and subsequently proceeded to overdose on the chocolate-hazelnut spread.  Until recently my aversion of the hazelnut had reached a point where I couldn't even stand their smell anymore.   So you can understand my misgivings when this week's Tuesdays With Dorie recipe was Hazelnut Biscotti.   

Admittedly I was predisposed to dislike the recipe from the outset, but was pleasantly surprised to find that I was premature in my assessment.  The biscotti were crispy and crunchy with a hazelnut aroma that wasn't too overpowering.   They're perfect plain with a cup of coffee but if you really want to gild the lily try dipping them in melted chocolate. 

Head on over to Baking and Boys or Homemade and Wholesome for the recipe.   One thing I found helpful - skip the part in the recipe where it says to remove the hazelnut skins by boiling the nuts in baking soda water.  This caused a huge mess for me.  Instead, toast the nuts in a 350F oven for about 15-20 minutes.   Let them cool and then rub the hazelnuts in a clean kitchen towel; the skins should come off pretty easily after that.

Mandel Bread

Despite its moniker mandel bread is not a bread at all, but actually a cookie.  It's an Eastern European Jewish treat very similar to Italian biscotti.

I first tasted mandel bread many years ago at a work potluck.  I mistakenly thought they were biscotti and was corrected by the colleague who brought them in.  They were so crunchy and light, not heavy and tough at all like some biscotti you find.  When I learned how easy they were to make I was instantly hooked.

Looking to make cookies to give away as homemade gifts?  Try making mandel bread.  Your family and friends will love them!