Lenox Almond Biscotti

So, this week’s recipe for Tuesdays With Dorie is Lenox Almond Biscotti.

Biscotti, you say? This Sicilian was game!

My first thought was, “Lenox? Is that some kind of a fancy pants New York flavoring? Hmm…maybe I should read the recipe.” So I did. I came to two conclusions: first, all they were are almond biscotti. No more, right? Nope. Wrong. Second conclusion: weird! They have CORNMEAL in them. No self-respecting Italian, Italian-American, or Sicilian-American would add cornmeal, right? I have my own recipes, and they work very well, thankyouverymuch Dorie.

But I made them anyway. This is the first time in two years I’ve gone to the store just to buy ingredients I didn’t have, as opposed to just substituting.

And it was WORTH it. So worth it. The cornmeal adds a fun crunch to the crunchy cookie. The almonds are delightful, and they’re not too sweet, which is good. Many “biscotti” I’ve had just, well, aren’t biscotti. They’re pathetically sweet impersonations of the classic cookie.

A few words of note: use REAL almond extract. Or any real extract, for that matter. It makes all the difference in these cookies. I’ve used imitation before, and it doesn’t do a cookie like this justice.

I’d show you pictures, but the battery on the camera died, and really, I didn’t feel like driving a half hour to the nearest Best Buy for a battery. I wanted to enjoy my cookies.

They’re found in Baking: From My Home to Yours, pages 141-143, if you’re interested.