Alpha Bakers - The Ischler

A trusted authority once assured me that Christmas Eve is for Cookies. If we extend the Christmas Eve framework to encompass the month of December (and as everyone knows, we do), then yesterday was a true expression of the dream (everything is awesome).

EVERYTHING IS AWESOME!!!! (sorry, finally watched the LEGO Movie last night and even though it's a giant commercial, it is pretty good, and that song is insidious in the highest degree)

 

But why is this Jew making Christmas cookies? Well, I'm sure you caught the part about cookies.
And also, why not? And also, some really great people came over to make them with me. The cookie team assembled at 10:30 AM, and by 4:30 PM we were...almost done. If you're tired of me being so frantically cheery, here's where you get your kicks, because we definitely hit cookie burn-out before stuffing all the cute little bags, and if I had to cover myself in relentless holiday cheer on the regular I would be Not Happy. I do love most of the trapping of Christmas, but like any oversold quantity, it's easy to get overloaded, especially the day after the dreaded SantaCon*.

Still, with all that, cookies are wonderful and so is spending time with wonderful people and listening to music I haven't heard in ten years, and so we baked all day. What did we make, oh lucky landlords and co-workers of the world? Biscotti, gingerbread, bergamot caramels, and the glamorous sandwich cookie known in Rose-land as The Ischler. I like a cookie with a title--it has a bit more weight than just 'oatmeal raisin' or 'brandy snap.' You know right off the bat that this cookie is an institution with the full weight of the treasury behind it.

It's also a very classic Rose Levy Beranbaum cookie, with the flavors of Eastern Europe hard by (the original inspiration is Hungarian, I believe). A buttery almond cookie, sandwiched with a layer of thick ganache and a layer of apricot levkar (I used some thick preserves). I had made these before as part of the Beta Testing for this book, and they were a pleasure and a joy both times. The dough is a little sticky but not to the point of absurdity, and the flavor combination is up my street as well (would you ever guess that I too am an Ashkenazi wonder, Rose?). Also, they just look so pretty and stick so well.

Sometimes I'm the lone ranger of baking, putting in long hours with just the oven and the television, but yesterday I was joined by some of the best people in the world. Above is A's first encounter with the stand mixer, and she loved it, especially when she got to give the call on how fast it should spin. In the space of a few weeks she's gone from someone who can say a few words when prompted to someone who can carry on whole conversations with content, and it changes everything. That and the fact that she has one of the all-time best personalities in the history of all-time best people makes her a very welcome guest.


























I like these big people a lot too. So much. I can't give out the recipe for The Ischler (shhh, it's here), but here's the recipe for the biscotti, courtesy of Nicola, A, and Eileen, one of the best bakers I know. It's possible I've posted these before, but they bear repeating. They are a treasure, people. Make them now.

Tuesdays with Dorie: Lenox Almond Biscotti

Generally, when I make biscotti, they fail. Usually I would attribute this to a skill set I haven't learned yet, or inferior ingredients, or lack of attention, but in this case it's just not true, something is wrong with biscotti.

How do I know this? Because I am great at making a dessert that is almost identical in every way to biscotti, my great-grandmother's mandelbrot. Here's where Dorie is genius. She's somehow managed to tweak the recipe for the Lenox Almond Biscotti pictured above so that it no longer differs from my great-grandmother's mandelbrot recipe in any meaningful way. Sure, Dorie uses butter instead of oil, and includes cornmeal for crunch, but in all other ways these 'biscotti' are obviously made from my family recipe.

Do I have a problem with this? No. I think mandelbrot is about as good as it gets, easy and delicious and long-keeping. However, I do have a problem with my parents' oven, which is on a spree of burning the bottoms off any innocent food attempting to cook in it. So we had burned 'biscotti.' No problem, still delicious. My mother did mention several times that she could taste the butter, and wasn't sure she liked it that way. I did like the cornmeal, though, and think I'll retain that trick.

Just to show that I'm not heartless and hating when it comes to biscotti, I'll include another family's recipe for biscotti, one which I hope to make very soon, after the jump.

APRICOT ALMOND BISCOTTI, from Eileen Giardina, baker extraordinaire

Ingredients:

2-3/4 cups sifted all purpose flour
1-1/2 cups sugar
1/2 cup (1 stick) chilled unsalted butter, cut into pieces
2-1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp salt
1 tsp ground ginger
3-1/2 oz. white chocolate, cut into pieces
1-2/3 cups whole almonds toasted
2 large eggs
1/4 cup plus 1 TBSP apricot flavored brandy
2 tsp almond extract
1 6-ounce package dried apricots, diced

Directions:

Line large cookie sheet with foil. Butter and flour foil. Combine first 6 ingredients in processor. Process until fine meal forms. Add white chocolate and process until finely chopped. Add toasted almonds and chop coarsely, using 6-8 on/off turns. Beat eggs, brandy and extract to blend in large bowl. Add flour mixture and apricots and stir until moist dough forms.

Drop dough by spoonfuls in three 12-inch long strips on prepared sheet. Moisten fingertips and shape each dough strip into 2-inch wide log. Refrigerate until dough is firm, about 30 minutes.

Position rack in center of oven and preheat to 350F. Bake until logs are golden, about 30 minutes. Transfer sheet to rack and cool completely.

Reduce heat to 300F. Cut logs from sides of pan if necessary. Transfer to work surface. Using heavy sharp knife, cut each log crosswise into 3/4-inch wide slices. Arrange half of cookies cut side down on cookie sheet. Bake 10 minutes. Gently turn cookies over and bake 10 minutes longer. Transfer cookies to racks. Repeat baking with remaining cookies. Cool cookies completely. (Can be prepared 2 weeks ahead; store in airtight container at room temperature.)

Makes about 40