Biscotti alla Mamma/Mamma's Biscotti

I still am not quite emotionally ready to write in detail about my mother, or "mamma" as I called her in our closest moments. Her recent death feels like a weight hanging on me. I can say, though, that the creation of Apples & Thyme has felt like exactly what I needed to help me process certain thoughts. My mother's passion was cooking; in the kitchen is where she glowed. Helping me to remember those times and images of her in her "element" is enabling me to overcome the sad images of the painful last years of her life.

Like my grandmothers, and probably like most of your female predecessors, my mom loved to bake cookies at the holidays. I have so many memories of making Christmas cookies with her, and in fact still have her old Betty Crocker Cookie Book that we used over and over again! This is the only time of year when I am motivated to bake cookies (not having much of a sweet tooth.) I remember giving my mom a biscotti recipe years ago, and that simple recipe blossomed into a whole repertoire of various types of biscotti coming from her kitchen. While going through her recipes, which is a library full, we found 17 collected biscotti recipes, not counting the ones in all the cookbooks. I found the original, which was always my favorite and I decided to make it this particularly foggy, cool Sunday. This is a trial run for the holidays. Since they turned out delicioso, I now know what I will be making to give to all the neighbors and our mail delivery person for holiday gifts.

Biscotti alla Mamma (modified just a bit to my taste!)

makes 30-40 biscotti

3/4 cup sugar

1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted

3 Tbsp. brandy

1 tsp. vanilla extract

1 cup coarsely chopped, roasted hazelnuts (you can use blanched or toasted almonds here, and if so, you can add 1 tsp. almond extract if you like, too.)

3 eggs

2 3/4 cup flour

1 1/2 tsp. baking powder

1/4 tsp. salt

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Mix together sugar, butter, brandy, extract(s). Add eggs and nuts.

Mix flour, baking powder and salt and then add to wet ingredients.

Mix well.

Lightly butter a baking sheet.

Shape dough into two loaves about 2-3" wide and 9-10" long.

Bake for 20-30 minutes, or until set to about a cake-like texture.

Remove from oven and let cool until the logs can be handled.

Cut in 1/2" diagonal slices. Lay flat on baking sheet and return to oven.
Bake for about 12 minutes (still at 350 degrees), then turn cookies.
Bake another 7-10 minutes until golden brown, or until toasted to your preference.

Here is the important part. Enjoy warm with a well-made espresso for an afternoon snack, just like I just did. While dipping your biscotti, think warm, wonderful, comforting thoughts of your mother, and smile at your fortune of having a mother!

This is my early entry for our December Apples & Thyme event. Entries are not due until December 10th. See my last post for all the entry details, and stop by co-hosts blog, Vanielje Kitchen to see the other half of the entries when they are posted on the 15th.

Fruit Galette or Crostata di Frutta

Nothing says summer to me more than stone fruits. I can't wait to taste the first white nectarine or peach of the season and then, if I can find them, Italian plums. There is something so sensual about their flesh and their aromatics are potently hypnotic. Oh yes! Already this year I have made this recipe two or three times, and I must make it again soon. I say "must" because I have these wanton and needy white nectarines calling to me from the kitchen. "Come and get us, we're ripe and luscious and if you don't want us the fruit flies will!" I respond with, "It's 83 degrees in the house and there is no way I want to turn the oven on. I promise I will have my way with you in the morning when it is cooler!"

Yesterday I sacrificed two of my lovely nectarines to Ilva's "Wine Simmered Peaches with Wine Flavoured Yogurt" recipe at Lucullian Delights . Thank you Ilva for saving me from turning on the oven one more day!

So, this is what I will be doing with my Sunday morning, in between sips of cappuccino and reading the Sunday LA Times. Why don't you join me?

Peach, Plum or Nectarine (or all combined!) Galette/Tarta di Prugna, Pesca o Pesca Nettarina

Pastry:

(With apologies to whoever wrote this recipe for not crediting you. I have had it for years and cannot find the source. I have altered it slightly. I love the way the sour cream makes this flaky pastry a little lighter than an all butter one.)

Makes enough dough for one 10-12 inch galette or tart

1/2 cups unbleached flour

1 tsp. sugar (more if you like your crust sweeter)

1/4-1/2 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. salt

6 Tbsp. cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/2" pieces

4 1/2 Tbsp. sour cream

In a food processor or by hand, combine flour, sugar, baking powder and salt and mix or pulse. Add the butter and pulse or mix until the texture resembles coarse meal. Chill the work bowl for 15 minutes. Replace the work bowl, add the sour cream and process until the dough resembles coarse sand. I know it is the right texture when I take some between my fingers and press. It is ready when it flattens out nicely into a dough between your fingers. If it is too dry, add a touch of sour cream or ice water, and if it is too wet, add a bit of flour. Gather the coarse mixture together and form with your hands into a disk. Wrap in plastic or wax paper and chill for 30 minutes. (At this point you can freeze the dough also, allowing it to thaw in the refrigerator before using.)

Filling:

(You can get creative with the fillings. Try apples, rhubarb, anything seasonal.)

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. While the dough is chilling, peel and seed the stone fruit. Slice into 1/4-1/2" slices. In a bowl, mix 1/4 tsp. vanilla, 1/4 cup sugar and the sliced fruit. (This makes a slightly sweet tart; use more sugar if you like a sweeter tart.) Add a good squeeze of lemon and I add in a sprinkle, about 1 tsp., of a fruit distillate like an Italian acquavite (clear) or kirsch.

Once the dough has chilled, roll out on a lightly floured surface. I never worry about rolling it into an exact circle, as this is meant to be a "free form" tart. It should be rolled to about 1/16 - 1/8" thick. The thinner, the better, as long as it is not so thin that the fruit will poke through. Transfer dough to a baking sheet. Sprinkle a little flour over the inside. (At this point, if you want a traditional looking tart, form a decorative edge around the dough using your fingers. It should be about 1/4-1/2" high. For a galette, leave the dough flat.) Pour the fruit mixture on top of the dough, leaving about 2-3" between the filling and the edge. Fold the edge of the dough over the fruit, overlapping the next section, and so on. Dot the fruit with a little butter. Sprinkle a little granulated sugar over the crust. Bake for 40 minutes, or until the crust is golden brown.

I made a plum version recently in which I added two lavender flowers to the plum mixture while macerating. The result was so subtle, that I couldn't taste the lavender, but I believe the whole galette came out more aromatic than usual.

I think I love this "dessert" more for breakfast than any other time. However, if you have it for dessert, seek out a refreshing Moscato d'Asti to have with it. Buon appetito and happy summer!