Happy Summer! What have you been doing to enjoy summer? Popsicles? Pedicure? Any good summer books? I'm reading Lies Beneath, by Anne Greenwood Brown. It's young adult fiction (beachy!) It takes place near and on Lake Superior. The vampire stuff didn't appeal to me, but this book is all about mermaids. It will make you think twice before you hop on an air mattress. This summer I've been really enjoying an occasional affogato. What's that you ask? It's SO good. Two small scoops of vanilla gelato or ice cream with espresso/strong coffee poured over the top. A perfect dessert. Think... root beer float for grown-ups. Add salted caramel ice cream and it's even better. Crunchy biscotti are meant to be dunked. Wine is good, coffee is good, and an affogato... great! There's really not a fancy recipe for the delight. Find a cute, small clear glass, add the ice cream, top with coffee/espresso and ta-da! You'll love it, I promise!
The hosts this week for Baking with Julia are Jodi of Homemade and Wholesome, and Katrina of Baking and Boys. Just click on one of their links and you'll find the biscotti recipe.
I'm late getting this post out, but... better late than never, as they say! It's been so hot, and so dry, and I really didn't feel like baking today. However, biscotti recipe is very easy and fun. So I cranked up the A/C and here they are!
Biscotti require two baking sessions. The first time is about 35 minutes. This bakes the log shape. Then, after a short cooling period, the biscotti are sliced, they're baked again on a wire rack to dry and toast the sweet cookies. I found that it went quickly. There was the perfect amount of dough to make about a dozen good sized biscotti. Some to eat, and some to share. I stayed pretty true to the recipe. Though I used chopped hazelnuts that I only toasted and didn't boil, and used Cointreau for the liqueur for the nice subtle orange flavor.
sliced-biscotti-5
First the dough is pressed into a log and 12 inches by 3 inches.
biscotti-dough-1
Once it's baked, it's sliced on the diagonal and placed on a wire rack. Then back into the oven for another 15 minutes or so, until light brown and crunchy.
precut-baked-biscotti-2
biscotti-ready-for-second-bake-3
Stay cool, bake when you can, and try an affogato soon!
biscotti-and-affogato-8