Whole Wheat Fennel Taralli

These are a perfect snack for early evenings with a glass of wine or a spritz. I love the nutty flavor that comes from using whole grain flour for these, and the semolina helps to mellow any bitterness you might get from whole wheat flour. They have a pleasantly gritty and crisp texture. I used whole grain flour from Savage Acres, who also mill their grain on site, in addition to being a creamery and artisan cheesemaker.

Yields approximately 3 dozen

Ingredients

450 grams whole wheat flour
50 grams semolina flour
1 ½ tsp Kosher salt
1 TB whole fennel seeds, lightly pounded in a mortar
100 ml dry white wine
100 ml feta brine*
150 ml extra virgin olive oil

Procedure

1. In a large bowl, combine the dry ingredients. Stir in the liquids (wine and oil), and mix well with a wooden spoon until incorporated. Turn the mixture out onto a lightly flour wooden board, and knead by hand until the mixture is soft and smooth, approximately 10 minutes. Alternatively, knead the dough in a stand mixer with the hook attachment.

2. Divide the dough into 20-gram pieces. Roll each piece into a long, slim “pencil” about the thickness of your pinky finger and about 4-5 inches in length. Bring the two ends together, overlapping slightly, and press them together to make a ring.

3. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. 

4. Bring a medium saucepan of water to a rolling boil. Working in batches, drop in the taralli and cook them for approximately 1 minute, or until they float to the surface. Remove them with a slotted spoon or spider to a sheet tray lined with a clean linen towel so they can dry. Repeat until all the taralli have been boiled.

5. Arrange the taralli on sheet pans lined with parchment. Bake them for approximately 20-25 minutes, or until they are cooked through, golden brown, and crisp. Remove them to a wire rack to cool completely. 

*I had some leftover brine from a container of Cheese Goatees goat’s milk feta, and I decided to use that for half of the quantity of white wine. It worked great! If you don’t have feta brine, just use dry white wine.

Molasses-Rye Spice Crackles

These spicy little morsels are addictive. Perfect with a cup of coffee or tea, they are de rigueur on my holiday baking roster, but they are a hit any time of year.

Yields approx 2 dozen small cookies

Ingredients

1 ⅓ cups dark rye flour
1 tsp baking soda
½ tsp ground cinnamon
½ tsp ground ginger
¼ tsp ground cloves
¼ tsp sea salt
½ cup packed dark brown sugar
4 TB unsalted butter
2 TB molasses
1 large egg white
¼ cup granulated sugar (for rolling)

Procedure

• Combine the rye flour with the baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, and salt in a bowl. 

• In a food processor, blitz the brown sugar with the butter, molasses, and egg white until blended.

• Add the dry ingredients to the food processor and blitz until blended. 

• Press the mixture together into a ball, wrap in plastic or store in an air-tight container, and refrigerate for at least a few hours.

• Preheat the oven to 375℉. 

• Divide the dough into equal pieces (about 24), then roll the pieces into balls in the palm of your hands.

• Place the granulated sugar into a bowl. Roll them in the sugar.

• Place the cookies on a parchment lined baking sheet.

• Bake for 10 minutes, then remove to a wire rack to cool.

Neapolitan Roccocò

Neapolitan Roccocò

Yields 24 cookies

In Naples and the surrounding area, roccocò are traditionally baked and eaten on December 8 (feast of the immaculate conception) as part of the Christmas holiday season. They are hard and dry, intended to be dipped into liqueur at the end of the meal. The pisto is a Neapolitan spice blend used in numerous traditional cookies such as mostaccioli. The recipe below makes enough for one batch of roccocò, but you could easily double or triple it so that you have it ready for other recipes.

Ingredients

For the Pisto Spice Mix
12 g cinnamon
2 g black peppercorns
3 g nutmeg
1 g cloves
1 g star anise
1 g coriander seeds
1 packet Paneangeli (vanilla powder)*

Procedure 

Pulverize the spices (except the vanilla) in a spice grinder. Add the vanilla powder to the spice mix and set aside.

For the Dough
350 g  whole almonds (save some for garnish as well)
500 g cake flour
200 g granulated sugar
2 tsp ammonium bicarbonate**
Zest of 1 orange
Zest of 1 lemon
1 TB finely chopped candied orange zest
20 g pisto (see above)
Pinch of fine sea salt
75 g honey
2 large eggs, lightly beaten

Procedure

• Preheat the oven to 350°F. 

• Toast the almonds on a baking sheet until fragrant, approximately 8-10 minutes. Do not let them burn. Reserve 24  almonds for the décor, then cut them in half vertically so you have 48 total almond pieces.

• Let the almonds cool, then process the remaining almonds (not the 48 pieces) in a food processor until finely ground. 

• Combine the ground almonds, cake flour, sugar, ammonium bicarbonate, pisto mix, salt, lemon and orange zests, and candied orange zest in food processor. Add the honey and one beaten egg. Pulse until just combined. The dough will be firm but make sure it is homogenous.

• In a small bowl, whisk the remaining egg with a bit of milk or water to make the egg wash, and set aside.

• Divide the dough into 24 balls. Roll the balls into ropes of approximately 3/4-inch diameter, and then join their ends to form rings — the rings should be about 3 inches in diameter.  Place the rings on baking sheets lined with paper or silpat mats, about 1 inch or so apart.

• Gently press the reserved almond halves into the cookies (2 or so per cookie), then brush the rings with the egg wash. 

• Bake the cookies until golden brown, approximately 20-25 minutes. The cookies will harden as they cool.

Chef’s Notes

A note on almonds: You can (and some folks prefer to) use blanched, skinless almonds. I like the darker, more rustic look of the unskinned almonds. Also, they are usually what I have on hand!

*If you cannot find Paneangeli vanilla powder (it's often sold in Italian markets/stores, but is also available online), substitute 1 tsp vanilla extract and add it to the dough with the beaten egg and honey.

**Ammonium bicarbonate is also known as baker’s ammonia. It’s often used in Italian cookies with a crisp and dry texture. Note that it does have a strong ammonia odor, but don’t worry. This will dissipate when the cookies are baked. If you cannot find it (you can order online from baking supply companies) or dislike the odor, substitute an equal amount of baking powder.

Rye Za'atar Puffs with Green Olives

These are essentially gougeres - the classic French cheese puff - but with some of my favorite flavors, like rye, olives, and of course, za’atar. I will enjoy these with some feta drizzled with honey and a sprinkling of sumac, more olives, and a glass of white wine! I’m lucky enough to get my za’atar from a friend who brings the “real deal” from Lebanon! What a treat.

Makes about 24 puffs

INGREDIENTS

1/2 cup all-purpose flour
½ cup rye flour
1 tsp fine sea salt
1 cup water
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
4 whole large eggs
½ cup Parmigiano-Reggiano, grated plus an additional tablespoon
½ cup pitted green olives, such as Cerignola, coarsely chopped 
1 tablespoon za’atar plus and additional teaspoon

PROCEDURE 

• Mix flour and salt together.

• In a saucepan, bring water and butter to boil. Dump in flour all at once and stir vigorously with a wooden spoon until mixture pulls away from sides and a dough ball is formed.  

• Cook out flour for a few minutes over low heat in this “baseball” form, stirring with the wooden spoon.

• Place the dough in a stand mixer with paddle attachment and beat on low speed, cooling dough slightly. (Note: If you don’t have a stand mixer, you can do this by hand in the same pot, using a wooden spoon to mix in the eggs.)

• Add eggs one at a time, fully incorporating each egg before adding the next one. After the eggs have been incorporated, add the chopped green olives, the ½ cup of grated cheese and 1 tablespoon of za’atar.

• Using two spoons place walnut-sized dollops on a sheet pan lined with parchment. You can also use a pastry bag if you have one. The dollops should have height (they should not be flat and spread out). Dab each puff with a bit of water, and then sprinkle the tops of each puff with the remaining grated cheese and za’atar.

• Bake at 450°F (convection is ideal, but not necessary) on the center rack until brown and puffed, approximately 15-20 minutes). Allow to cool fully on tray before moving. 

• When cool, store in dry airtight container.  They also freeze beautifully!