Whole-Grain Polenta Biscotti with Lemon and Hazelnuts

As you may know, we're sort of nuts for whole grains. To that end, there are plenty of whole-grain recipes on this site. You might want to check this out. Or this. Or this.

Today, I've got a whole-grain polenta biscotti. Yep, whole grain. Because there are whole-grain versions of the classic, Italian, corn ingredient out there. For example, Anson Mills makes one. Click here and scroll down a bit for the "polenta integrale." It's coarse ground. And a gorgeous treat. Bruce buys it in big bags and keeps it in the chest freezer downstairs.

It makes these biscotti crunchy--very--and irresistible. Have a glass of red wine on hand. Or a cup of tea. Because dunking is necessary.

So let's get to it.

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Peanut Butter Biscotti

Have I told you this one? That earlier this year, we crossed our 10,000th recipe professionally developed? And I'm talking about the ones for pay. You get to see a lot of the ones Bruce makes up on the fly right here on this blog.

Needless to say, I can't remember them all. Sometimes, someone will say, "Oh, I made your. . . ." My eyes glaze over. Because I'm scared I won't remember. And so will look like an idiot. Instead of looking like an overworked food writer. Which is much the same thing.

But some recipes I remember well. Like these biscotti. I've been meaning to get back to this recipe for years.

When we were writing our peanut butter tome--yes, we have a whole book on peanut butter which you can see here--I wanted to come up with biscotti in which peanut butter replaces any other fat (except for the fat in the eggs). You understand, when I say "I wanted to come up with biscotti," I mean that I wanted Bruce to come up with biscotti. Hey, somebody has to be the idea man. It's a tough job. Especially for an overworked food writer who often looks like an idiot.

This recipe is the result. I finally got back to it a couple of weeks ago to take to a dinner party as a house gift--and it was like meeting an old friend. Peanut butter, dried fruit (like the jelly in a PB&J), lots and lots of crunch. I DID have a pretty good idea. You might like these, too, especially for the holidays.

So let's get to it.

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Orange Rosemary Biscotti

You probably could have figured this out, but I'm not much of a soft and gooey person. (No, we're not talking about the marks of a personality!) I'm the guy picking off the crunchy bits at the edge of a casserole. I'm the one who orders his fries extra-extra-extra crisp. And I'm the one who can keep a whole bag of toffee for months on end but will eat every potato chip in the house for no other reason than that they're there. (It's why there's rarely any potato chips around here!)

For all these reasons, biscotti are about the best cookies for me. But here's the conundrum: I like to dunk them. Yet I still want them still crunchy, even after they take a dive. That means they have to be very crisp. Tooth-breakingly so. Because I want to souse one or two in the last of my red wine after dinner. Or in a cup of tea mid-afternoon. And still get a crunch!

Bruce's orange rosemary biscotti are gorgeously crunchy but also delicately aromatic. A perfect treat. Plus, they freeze exceptionally well. What could be better?

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Fig Cookies, Part 2

You've got that first bit down, right? The filling. If not, check it out here. Because now we're making cookies.

Remember how I said I wanted something like those brand-name, mass-produced fig cookies, but more--that is, more like a cross between a danish and a biscotti?

Stick with me here. Have you ever even considered crossing a danish and biscotti? I have! Sometime, I'll tell you about our attempts to cross cheesecake and baklava.

Anyway, here we go, the completion of our fig-stuffed cookies.

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