Hello, my friends! We will do something different this month, and you are going to thank me for it. If you want to create a true Italian experience for your customers, there are some items you simply must have on your menu. I’m going to tell you about one of them today. Fortunately, it’s very easy to make. It’s a dessert called biscotti. Biscotti is a very popular Italian cookie. We’re going to make it with Sambuca, a sweet, anise-flavored Italian liqueur with a hint of licorice. You can place this cookie on your dessert menu and pair it with a nice cup of cappuccino or espresso. Mangia!

 

Ingredients:

• 2 eggs
• 1 c. sugar
• 8 tbsp. salted butter 
• (melted)
• 2 tbsp. Sambuca
• 4 tbsp. baking powder
• 1 lemon (for zesting)
• 3 ½ c. flour
• 1/4 tsp. salt

 

Directions:

Preheat a convection oven to 350 degrees. In a mixer, beat the eggs and sugar together. Add the butter, Sambuca, baking soda and salt and grate the lemon peel. Add the flour and baking powder to form a dough. (Spread a little flour on your table as well so the dough does not stick to the table.) Knead the dough, then make three rolls, about 12” long. Place the dough rolls on parchment paper and bake them in the oven for about 25 minutes. Remove from the oven and let them cool about 10 minutes.

Once they’ve cooled, cut the logs into ½” thick pieces or crescent shapes and place them back on the baking sheet. Bake an additional eight minutes or until they’re done. Let cool before serving. Yields about 30 biscotti.