Ingredients
500 grams (about 1 pound) flour
220 grams (about 7-3/4) powdered sugar
120 grams (about 4-1/4 ounces)whole sweet blanched almonds, mixed with some pine nuts
30 grams (about 1 ounce) butter
a bit of aniseed
4 eggs [and a 5th egg if needed]
a pinch of salt
Egg wash
Egg yolk
Original Italian text
Farina, grammi 500
Zucchero in polvere, grammi 220
Mandorle dolci, intere e sbucciate frammiste a qualche pinolo, gramma 120
Burro, grammi 30
Anaci, un pizzico
Uova, N. 5
Sale, una presa
Directions
Leave aside the almonds and pine nuts and an egg, blending all the other ingredients (You only need to use the fifth egg if needed) to make a soft dough.
Mix in the almonds and pine nuts.
Divide the dough into 4 parts, and make four loaves about as thick as a finger and as long as the palm of your hands.
Arrange the loaves on a cookie sheet greased with butter, and dusted with flour.
Brush the tops of the loaves with egg yolk.
Do not bake the loaves for too long, this will make it easier to slice them.
Actually, it might be better to slice them the next day, because the crust will have had time to soften.
Put the biscotti slices back in the oven and toast lightly on both sides, and here are your crunchy cookies.
Original Italian text
Lasciate indietro le mandorle e i pinoli per aggiungerli dope ed intridete il tutto con quattro uova, essendo coso sempre in tempo di servirvi del quinto, se occore per formare una pasta alquanto morbida.
Fatene quattro pani della grossezza di un dito e larghi quanto una mano; collocateli in una teglia unta col burroe infarinata, e dorateli sopra.
Non cuoceteli tanto per poterli tagliare a fette, il che verra meglio fatto il giorno appresso, che la corteccia rammollisce.
Rimettete le fette al forno per tostarle appena dalle due parti, ed eccovi i biscotti croccanti.
Notes
The recipe in this entry was taken from "La Scienza in Cucina e L'Arte di Mangiar Bene manuale Pratico per le Famiglie" compilato da Pellegrino Artusi. The book was first published in 1891. Since then many Italian editions have been published. Olga Ragusa's selection of recipes from Pellegrino Artusi's famous cookbook, titled "The Italian Cook Book," can be found in its entirety at www.archive.org (It's free). The University of Toronto recently published a new English edition of Pellegrino Artusi's "Science in the Kitchen and the Art of Eating Well"; many of the recipes in this edition can be found at www.books.google.ca.... Photo: Mary Melfi. |
