Q In September in Tuscany, we ate these really hard, crisp little almond biscotti. They weren't too sweet, they practically crackled, and you are supposed to dunk them in sweet wine and coffee. Do you have a recipe? I bought a bag of them and tried to translate the ingredients. It looked like there was no fat in them, but the biscotti recipes we've found here all have butter.
THE BISCOTTI HUNTERS in Dallas
A You are talking about a specialty of the area where my family comes from; I know them well.
Called Cantuccini, these little biscotti come from northern Tuscany, the area around Prado and west from there into my family's territory, Lucca. They will keep for weeks in a sealed tin, making them fine gifts.
Biscotto (biscotti is the plural) means twice cooked. It is the second baking that gives them their crispness. For a Tuscan, these cookies are the Italian version of "Mom and apple pie." The citrus zests and black pepper in this recipe are a holdover from Tuscany's past. Unlike those you may be familiar with, today's recipe becomes more of a thick batter than dough. Handle it with a pastry scraper for greater ease.
Foods for rich wines
Q We are a bunch of wannabe wine geeks who do semi-serious wine tastings. The big thing right now is which foods to serve with fairly rich wines, such as chardonnay and viogner. Can you come up with some ideas?
WINE GEEK WANNABES