Nonna Cornaccio's Biscotti

 

This is my Nonna Cornaccio's famous Biscotti recipe she brought from Naples Italy to the states and is a cherished recipe for our family. See very important tips below for perfect crunchy biscotti! This makes a little over 2 dozen if you don’t include the ends, those are for the baker! 

Ingredients

2.5  cups all purpose flour 

1/4 of a stick of butter (1/8 cup) softened not melted!

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 cup sugar

1.5 - 2 tablespoons almond extract

3 eggs 

Optional: 1 cup semi sweet chocolate chips melted for topping

Directions

Mix butter and sugar in stand or hand held mixer, add eggs and extract and mix , mix eggs and extract in a separate cup then pour in slowly so eggs can incorporate and mix until a dough forms.

Add in dry ingredients and mix until incorporated. 

Scoop dough out and place in a baggie and put in fridge until cold or over night or freeze for future use.

Set oven to 350

Form 2 logs and slightly flatten, see photo below, and bake for 30 minutes or more, they need to be golden brown and firm in center, if they aren’t they will not cut properly. If it’s still very soft in center put back in for 3-5 more minutes. 

Pull out and cool to touch (they won’t cut properly if not cooled) , then slice into diagonal slices (see below)  turn over to sides (see below) and bake 10-15 more minutes. Flip to other side for 3-5 more minutes. 

Cool completely before next step.

OPTIONAL: Melt chocolate and spread thinly on flat sides of each biscotti ( I use a small frosting knife) then place the cookie tray in fridge to set. 

Remove and serve at room temp, these last 1 week at room temp.

Important Tips for crunchy biscotti: 

Form long thin and logs and slice thin or else  they’ll be cakey, these are small not like the big store bought biscotti! 

Use regular butter not Irish butter as it will change the recipe. 

Turn back on to bottoms (like they baked initially) to cool.

Spread chocolate thin.

Remove from fridge as soon as the chocolate sets and keep covered at room temp. 

My sweet little Nonna Cornacchio (far right)

                                                               

                                                                                                             

Baba A Rum/Limoncello

Ever since I first watched Babettes Feast over 10 years ago I have become completely obsessed with baking and eating Babàs, so much so that my Dad  teasingly calls me "Baba". Then five years later I went to Italy and was thrilled to see these  little babàs in the Pasticceria scattered all over southern Italy, the Neapolitans are considered the master babà-makers of Italy.  My favorite was a babà soaked in Limoncello, a lemon liqueur. This recipe is one I have tweaked over the years and is pretty close to those I had in Italy and note that I have given you two syrup recipes, one for a  rum and one for a limoncello syrup.
Tools
12 cup bundt pan
Food processor or mixer *NOTE: if you use a mixer you will need to mix for 8 minutes at the end instead of 2 minutes.
Ingredients
Rum Syrup:
1 teaspoon vanilla
 1 cup sugar
1 cup water
1/2 cup Jamaican rum
Limoncello Syrup:
1 cup sugar
1 cup water
1/2 cup limoncello
zest of 1 lemon
Cake:
21/2 teaspoons yeast
2 1/4 cups all purpose flour
pinch salt
1/4 cup sugar plus 1 tablespoon sugar
1/2 cup warm milk
4 eggs
1 stick butter (room temperature)
1/4 cup warm water
Directions
Rum Syrup: Boil water, add vanilla and sugar and simmer for 15 minutes. Remove, cool, and add rum.
Limoncello Syrup:  Boil water, add sugar, zest, and simmer for 15 minutes. Remove, cool, and add liqueur.
Cake: Disslove yeast in the milk and water. Add the 1 tablesoon of sugar and 1/4 cup of the flour. Cover with plastic and allow it form a sponge and double in size, just a few minutes.
Place the dry ingredients in a food processor and pulse a few times. Add the sponge and mix on low speed.
On low speed add the eggs 1 at a time.
Add the butter in 2 batches and mix together, then mix on low for *2 minutes- see note .
Note: This will be a very sticky gooey dough!
Preheat oven to 350.
Pour into a very well sprayed bundt pan. Cover with sprayed plastic and allow to double in size in a warm place (on top of pre- heating stove), about 50 minutes.
Bake for 25 minutes at 350.
Loosen the edges with a knife and then rest for 10 minutes.
Loosen edges again and then flip onto tray.
Poke holes with a toothpick and brush mixture on with a brush. Repeat this every now and then until the syrup is gone. Make sure to get edges, sides, and inside the center of the cake.
Serve with Rum or Limoncello flavored  homemade whipped cream (Placed in the center of the cake) or like the Neapolitan's do, with Vanilla Custard!

Babette preparing her feast!