The Anise Cookies Recipe, La Ricetta dei Biscotti all’Anice

This recipe was passed to my companion Nicole from her grandmother, who immigrated to the United States from Calabria in the 1930s. Her family makes  Biscotti all’Anice every Christmas. When we make it togeher, we give it as gifts to my family as well. Each year, my family looks forward to having a type of biscotti they cannot get anywhere else.

Ingredients

2 cups sugar
1 cup melted butter
4 tablespoons anise seeds
4 tablespoons of aniseed liqueur
2 tablespoons pure vanilla extract
2 tablespoons water and 3 tablespoons of Bourbon
2 cups coarsely chopped walnuts
6 eggs
5.5 cups of flour for all uses
1 tablespoon baking powder

 

Procedure:

Preheat oven to 380 Fahrenheit degrees.
Mix sugar with the melted butter, the aniseed, the aniseed liqueur, vanilla, the water and nuts.
Beat the eggs, sift the flour, then add the baking powder.
Mix everything with the ingredients above.
Keep the dough in the fridge for 2-3 ore. A this point make some batches (two, maximum three) with the dough and place on a greased baking sheet. Bake for 20 minutes. Let it cool down.
Cut the single batch diagonally forming slices. Arrange the slices on one side and toast for 15 minutes at 380 Fahrenheit degrees.

Buon appetito!

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Dictionary

  1. tablespoon = cucchiaio
  2. extract= estratto
  3. coarsely = grossolanamente
  4. melted= fuso
  5. pre-heat = preriscaldare
  6. to sift = setacciare
  7. to beat= sbattere
  8. to add= aggiungere
  9. to bake = infornare
  10. to lie down = coricare
By Don Rood, Portland – Oregon.
 

The Anise Cookies Recipe, La Ricetta dei Biscotti all’Anice

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