Mangia, Mangia! Italian biscotti from the Walla Walla Italian Heritage Association

Hello, everybody! The Fresh Pioneer is back and I bring delicious Italian goodness!!

I was at our homeschool girls' book club last week and spent a few glorious hours in a warm and beautiful kitchen, eating apple crisp with piles of real whipped cream topping! Even though I had eight BAZILLION things to do (like get my hair cut and go to Home Depot, those things are not related) I had a fabulous afternoon chatting and eating. Who cares if our refrigerator is on its last legs? Not me! Or at least, I don't care when I have a plate of warm apple crisp in front of me.

 

Now, as I was chowing down on that deliciousness, I spied a little cookbook on my friend Terri's shelf. You all know I love a good cookbook.

 But... I had an ulterior motive. See, Terri makes the most AMAZING biscotti. If I could get my hands on that recipe, I could have biscotti every day, as much as I wanted! A devious plan was hatched.

 She so sweetly let me borrow the cookbook. I got it home and started to page through it. You know how you can tell a person's favorite Bible verse by how the page looks? Well, I didn't have to look far for her favorite recipe. Past the braccioli, past the tarduci, past the cardiletti, the latte dulce and the cassata alla siciliana, there it was...

 Behold, the page of the biscotti recipe! Ooooo, I rubbed my hands together in maniacal glee! I was never going to want for biscotti again!

1/2 c butter
1 c sugar
3 eggs
3 c flour
3 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 tsp anise flavoring
1 c chopped nuts
 (The recipe was submitted by Pam Daltoso Hamilton, but there was another underneath by Anna Perfetto, and another by Mary Locati and another Carmy Destito, under that one by Rose Zaro.
Since Terri is a Biagi, I'm assuming she knows her biscotti. And if not, I'll just have to TRY THEM ALL.)

 So, I brought out the child labor and started chopping. Ignore his haircut. We've covered this.
(And that's a butter knife. It looks like a steak knife, but we've only had two trips to the ER in 13 years and I'd like to keep it that way.)

 Small child is having a wonderful time chopping walnuts from our tree. I don't have the heart to tell him that we only need a cup.

 Ooooh, what a pretty bowl! I wonder where I got that? It smells like... biscotti.

 So, cream the butter, sugar, eggs. In another bowl, sift the dry ingredients together. Add them, mix well. Now add the nuts and the anise flavoring. (Of course, I didn't have anise flavoring. I don't even like anise. When I lived in France they drank anise liqueur and it was DISGUSTING. So, I'm assuming that vanilla will be just as good.)

 The dough will be very sticky. Grease the sheet well. Heat the oven to 350F. Shape the dough into long rolls.

 While the biscotti cooks for 30 minutes, browse the rest of the recipes.

 Edna is murmuring to herself. "Questa sembra delizioso!" A few minutes later, she makes a noise. Apparently, the pork sausage/ cinnamon spice cake was not meeting with her approval, even though it says it's great with a caramel frosting. I peeked over her shoulder and said she should definitely try the pizza-by-the-yard recipe. "Vorrei un piatto con formaggio..." she mutters. And there's even a recipe for making your own cheese that dries in a string in the basement! This book has everything! (Of course, we have no basement, but that's no matter...)

 The oven beeped and I checked the biscotti. They were huge and fluffy. But I'd set the timer for 20 minutes, just in case my oven ran hotter than the recipe needed. I put another ten minutes on. Edna was eyeing my new Pinterest activity. It's a heart cut from a map, and the place is my honeymoon. Edna snickered and said it looked like a broken heart! She's so funny. Now all I can see is a framed broken heart.                
     Che romantico!!

 After 30 minutes, remove the biscotti and let cool for 15 minutes. Slice diagonally. Put them back in the oven for ten minutes. This is what makes them super crispy.

 I couldn't even wait for them to cool. It was BISCOTTI time.

Now, I hear these keep well in tupper ware, but they were GONE by the next morning. It wasn't me, I only had two.
Okay, maybe four.
   ALL RIGHT. I lost count! I admit it! I'm a biscotti glutton!

 But now I have the secret recipe and an unending supply, BWAHAHAHAHAHA!

  Fino alla prossimo volta, i miei amici!!