1 2/3 cup bread flour
2 cup cake flour
2 cup walnut pieces
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1 tbsp anise seeds
1/2 cup unsalted butter
3 eggs
1 1/3 cup white sugar
2 tsp lemon zest
2 tsp orange zest
1/2 tsp anise extract
8 oz bittersweet or semisweet
1 chocolate, optional
Directions
Blend bread and cake flours, walnuts, baking powder, baking soda and
anise seeds in bowl. Melt butter and set aside to cool.
Beat 2 eggs, 1 additional egg yolk and sugar until smooth. Reserve the
remaining egg white. Stir in zests and anise. Add butteer and mix
until smooth. Add dry ingredients and mix to smooth dough.
Roll dough into 2 14inch logs and place on baking sheet lined with
parchment paper. Press tops of logs to flatten slightly. Brush with
reserved egg white.
Bake at 375 degrees F. until logs are light brown, but still give
slightly when tops are pressed, about 30 minutes. Remove pan from
oven and reduce temperature to 325 degrees.
While logs are still warm, cut diagonally into 1/2 inch slices. Return
slices to baking sheet, placing on sides. Return to oven and bake
until cookies are lightly brown, about 15 minutes. Remove from oven
and cool on wire racks.
Cut chocolate into 1/2 inch chunks. Place 2/3 in stainless steel bowl,
spreading in even layer over bottom and up sides of bowl. Cover bowl
with plastic wrap. Fill medium saucepan 1/3 full of water. Bring
water to simmer over high heat. Remove pan from heat and set bowl of
chocolate over top. Let stand until 80% of the chocolate has melted.
Do not let temperature of chocolate drop below 88 degrees on candy
thermometer. If so, place bowl over saucepan of warm water and
continue stirring. Stir until chocolate is smooth and glossy.
Have clean sheet of waxed paper nearby. Dip 1/2 of each cookie in
chocolate. As cookie is removed, scrape top and bottom against side
of bowl to remove excess chocolate. Set cookies on waxed paper until
chocolate sets, about 3 hours or put into freezer for about 20
minutes. Submitted By SANDY GAMBLE
1995 233849 ~0700 (MST)
Servings: 48 biscotti
Anise & Walnut Biscotti Recipe brought to you by Recipe Ideas
Categories: Biscotti; Cookie; Italian; Nut; Pasta
The History of Recipes
Experts have found proof that recipes existed far back into history, certainly as far as the early Egyptians, and potentially, even further back. In practice though, these, early cook books were just very simple hieroglyphic recipes for preparing meals.
Interestingly, the oldest recipe found, according to food historians is a series of tablets in the Sumerian language which describe the making of bread which is then used to make a drink, quite possibly a form of beer as it is recorded as making anyone who drank it feel `blissful`. Later on, in Roman times 25BC a roman called Apicius wrote a number of documents detailing recipes prepared by wealthy roman citizens. In his publication, he tells us how the meals of wealthy Romans were split into appetizers, main course and dessert, known in latin as `Gustatio, Primae Mensae and Secundae Mensae`. Aspicius informs us how the chefs of Roman times made use of a good variety of aromatic flavors, including some that we all recognise such as bay, rue and parsley. Closer to modern times, we find a couple of cookery books dating from the fourteenth century ; a cookery book called `Forme of Cury`, and another called `Curye on Inglish`. Despite their titles, these two books are not about the indian food that is served today, but rather accounts of the types of food on the menues of the rich people of that period. In the fifteenth century, people returning from the crusades brought back a variety of foods, spices and herbs from the East, including spices like parsley and basil. The introduction of these new tastes led to a torrent in recipe manuscripts, the majority of which are now in private cookery archives. During the succeeding few centuries, the powerful and rich houses competed to lay on the best banquets, and as a result the best chefs and their recipe collections were at a premium. However, it was during the nineteenth century that fine cookery and cookery books became really popular. The Famous Mrs Beeton in the UK, and Fannie Merritt Farmer in the US, dedicated years of their lives to collecting, trying out, and writing down popular recipes of the day. By the arrival of the 1900s, cook books were highly popular due to increased literacy, people having increased spare time and having more money to spend. Like it or not, the introduction of television gave us TV cooks and the spin-off recipe books. And that brings us to the present day and the invention of the internet, allowing everybody to search through thousands of recipes such as those found on sites such as the one you are reading now. |
We hope you enjoy this Anise & Walnut Biscotti recipe.
