Chocolate Biscotti and Giveaway!

One food fantasy I have is skinny dipping in a chocolate lake. I would tentatively dip my toes into the edge, testing the temperature, then I’d walk to the edge of the dock and take in a deep breath before dive bombing into the chocolate bath. I’d swim a few laps but don’t think I’d get very far because the chocolate would be too thick and besides, I’d get distracted by the gulpfuls of chocolate in my mouth. I’d be better off licking my fingers like a cat.

In real life, if I do have chocolate on hand, I’m usually fully clothed and nibbling on a sliver of Lindt dark chocolate, preferably the sea salt or roasted almond kind. If they're on sale, I'm tempted to buy the whole box, just in case a serious chocolate craving strikes, surprisingly however, a bar will last me two weeks, I stop myself from having more than 2 squares per day, anymore and I’d feel guilty.

I already feel bad about my embarrassingly long list of recipes saved under the Must Make folder in my computer, I’m seriously behind, but at least I can cross off this chocolate biscotti off (yay, one down, only 165 more to go!). I’ve made plenty of chocolate desserts lately: cake, brownies, cookies, but they never lasted long enough for me to write and photograph, save for these biscotti which are really something to talk about. Your teeth will break under the mighty strength of these biscotti, making them suitable for some hardcore dunking in coffee, milk, tea, or all the above.

I’m not Italian, so I feel like it’s not culturally correct for me to comment on how biscotti should be, but I do know I prefer mine leaning towards the crispy side. I’ve had softer biscotti and even tried the Starbucks white chocolate almond biscotti. It was depressing, chemical-tasting and lacked that wow factor, even as I ripped apart the plastic wrapping, I should have stopped right there, knowing that I would only taste disappointment, so from now on, I only eat homemade biscotti, preferably teeth-breakingly hard biscotti. 

Texture aside, biscotti can be customized to your favourite flavour combinations, like the way pistachios and cranberries make my heart sing or the unexpected-but-it-works Parmesan and Black Pepper Biscotti. But here, I give you an uber chocolately cookie, where chocolate is the star of the show, the better the chocolate, the stronger the flavour. I used a mixture of almonds and filberts because that's all I had, and I promise these will please any kind of chocolate-lover out there. Someday my chocolate lake will come true, meanwhile, all I can do is keep baking my heart out.

And for the best part of this post, my friend Lisa had an extra set of measuring spoons and so kindly suggested I give them away here. They're super cute, each spoon have their own little saying and there's nothing like a little spoonful of love in your baked goods. All you have to do is leave a comment, sharing your favourite chocolately dessert, then on Wednesday July 11th, 2012, I'll randomly select a winner. So comment away people!

Giveaway results! So, I had some difficulty configuring the randomizer so that the random number I chose would show, but when I clicked it the number 9 showed up which means...Mandy is now the owner of a new set of measuring spoons! Thank you all for commenting, it was fun reading your favourite chocolate desserts.
 

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Recipe here!

Cranberry and Pistachio Biscotti plus Other Adventures

I’ve wanted to share this recipe for a while, it’s very dear to me because it was one of my first loves when I was in Montreal. I had browsed through recipes on Epicurious and baked my first of many batches at my cousin’s apartment, wrapped in layers of cotton and wool since the kitchen lacked heat and the best way to stay warm was bake with the oven on at full force. 

 

 

But lately, there hasn’t been much need for that. If you’re like me, live in Toronto, you will know that the winter has been unusually warm. We got a day of furious snowfall right after Christmas, but it’s already starting to melt into little rivers on the streets and given the remarkably good weather, I’ve been doing some exploring.

I couldn’t stop staring at the ROM. It’s a beautiful building that sits on Bloor and Queen's Park, with crystal like structures spilling on the street, its design inspired by the museum's collection of gemstones. I’ve passed by many times but never really took it in till this last week. 

 

 

On the same day, exhausted from hours of walking up and down Bloor street, my friend and I stumbled into Carole’s Cheesecake Café tucked in a little nook on Cumberland street. Their cheesecake has been named the best cheesecake in the city and boy, does it live up to that title. 

I ordered a Taffy Apple cheesecake and oh lordy lord, the filling was fluffier than clouds and as light as whipped cream, but the best part was the topping. There was crunchy toffee and crystallized apples to contrast against the soft filling and then just when your tongue can’t handle the sensory overload, there are slivers of soft cooked apples with a hint of cinnamon. I polished it off my slice in record time. This is serious cheesecake people. 

Later in the week, I discovered a shop that sells imported Dutch products including Speculoos (!!!!). If you remember my love letter, you would know about my mad love for all things Speculoos.  A very kind blogger from across the border also sent me Trader Joe’s version of Speculoos aka Cookie Butter (I love that name) for Christmas. I’ve been scooping it out of the jar with my finger spoon everyday...whoops! So much for making ice cream out of it. 

 

There’s also been a lot of lobster. Lobster bisque, lobster soup, lobster hot pot, and lobster cooked in soy sauce. You should see my parents attack lobster, it's as if it was the end of the world, in other words, hilarious. My mom has the biggest grin and my dad turns into a kid in a toy store.

 

In between meals and finding little gems in what is now my hometown, I’ve been nibbling on these dynamite biscotti. They are insanely addictive, crunchy, crumbly in all the right places, and intoxicate your mouth with the sweet smell of baked eggs and butter. They are undoubtedly festive cookies and would make wonderful treats to ring in the new years say at a potluck. I bet you will have people fighting to get the recipe from you. I certainly would. 

Happy new year and thanks for reading, drooling, commenting and stopping by. May 2012 bring us more luscious and saliva-inducing sweets!

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Recipe here!