Cookie Monster: Honey Almond Biscotti

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Carrie Vasios

My bucket list includes a bunch of obvious things—learn how to scuba dive, visit India, eat at Le Bernardin—but also a few stranger ones. Right up there next to Get Drunk and Attend the Westminster Dog Show is Learn How to Keep Bees. Why? Well, primarily because I love honey and secondly, if you don't find bees totally fascinating, I don't think we can be friends.

I've recently made two inroads towards my goal. I watched The Secret Life Of Bees (as motivation, because if Dakota Fanning and Queen Latifah can bee keep than I sure as heck can) and I read a how-to book on beekeeping. The book was fascinating, with tips on queens and brood chambers and how to deal with swarms, but it did reaffirm my hunch that this is a hobby I'll only get to when I'm retired with a garden and no qualms about ruining my hair with a giant netted hat.

In the meantime, I'll expand my repertoire of honey recipes so that when the time comes to use up my gallons of glorious honey, I'll be ready. These biscotti are the latest addition, and they are really nice as a tea-time snack. The dough itself is only sweetened with honey, so it's important to use one with a strong flavor. I prefer Orange Blossom honey here, as I highlight the citrus flavor with added lemon zest. Vanilla extract and almonds add complimentary floral notes. Because the cookies themselves aren't very sweet, they're dipped in an egg wash and sprinkled with sugar for a bit of crunch. I love these biscotti dipped in a cup of Earl Grey Tea, where the honey and bergamot flavors can emphasize each other.