joy to the world and the pleasures of biscotti

Anise and Orange Flavored Biscuits--if I can do it, you can too!

It was supposed to rain buckets this weekend and after a crazy week of design and production I was hoping to sleep in, but instead I woke to the sound of a loudspeaker, horns, sirens, and what sounded like a loud argument down the ravine behind my house.



I went downstairs and was greeted by the sound of a Christmas parade right below my house. The street was closed off for who knows how long and so I sat and had a cup of coffee as a marching band played "Joy To The World."



It occured to me that it was the perfect time to make biscotti. Now I know this is a blog ostensibly about style, and usually I write mostly about fashion, beauty, and art. But as I've said all along, style is about how you live your life. During the holidays having good food on hand to feed your loved ones seems like one of the best ways I can think of to enjoy life. So without further ado here is a no-fail recipe that is brilliant for any time of the day and also makes a great gift.



Grating the orange rind really brings out the anise flavor in the biscotti and is such a nice scent to fill the kitchen with first thing in the morning. Usually I grate it finely, but I decided to try a more rustic version. To me, it tasted even better with larger pieces of orange rind.

Preheat the oven to 350. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper and set aside. Place 2 cups of flour, 1.5 teaspoons of baking powder, 1/8 teaspoon of salt, 1.5 teaspoons of anise seed, and 1 tablespoon of grated orange rind in a medium sized bowl and stir to combine.

In a separate bowl add 1/2 cup sugar, a whole egg, an egg white, 1.5 teaspoons of vanilla, and 2 tablespoons of extra light olive oil. Beat on medium speed for a minute. Add flour mixture and run on low speed for about a minute until the dough comes together in a sticky mass.



Like a lot of bloggers I've been tagged with that questionnaire to share the strangest facts about myself that no one else knows. I wouldn't know where to start so I've never addressed it. But if you notice the red coffee filter in the photo above, then you are on to freaky fact #1 about me. I am like a guppy who will eat fish food until it explodes, except with coffee. This is why I have to use a little filter to keep it to one cup a day (or two cups if I'm cheating, which is almost always).



Turn the dough out onto a well floured work surface and divide it in half. (I love wax paper because there's hardly any mess--and if you read Apartment Therapy, then you know the way people obsess about keeping their granite clean). With lightly floured hands, shape it into 2 ropes approximately 13 inches long.



Place logs about 4 inches apart on the cookie sheet. Lightly flatten each into a log about 1/2 inch high, 2" high, and 14" long. You can brush the logs with lightly beaten egg white, but I don't think it needs it and always skip this step. Bake in a preheated oven until lightly golden, about 20 minutes.

There are several more steps left, but there's something so satisfying about starting to clean up while it's baking.





If you have stainless anything, this is the perfect time to wipe it down. The best part is, you end up with a kitchen that smells great, warm biscotti, and a spotless kitchen.



After 20 minutes take the cookie sheet out of the oven and place on a wire rack (the top of the stove will do just fine). While it cools for 5 minutes, raise the oven temperature to 375.



Transfer the logs to a cutting board and cut the logs diagonally into 1/2" slices with a serated knife.



Place slices on baking pan and return to the oven. Bake until lightly toasted, about 10 minutes. Take the biscotti out and let cool completely. Biscotti can be stored in a tin lined with wax paper for 2 weeks, but no doubt it will be gone long before then.