In the grand American tradition of Bigger is Better, commercial biscottiare sometimes the size of Little League bats with a durable texture to match.

In Italy, biscotti are more diminutive—about the size of a fat thumb. Valued as “good keepers,” these crisp cookies can hang out for a long time in the larder. They stand ready to be plunked into a cup of cappuccino, tea or even a glass of wine. The dip moistens the biscotti and further flavors them.

Biscotti attain their crunchy demeanor by two sojourns in the oven. “Bis” means “twice” and “cotti” means cooked. I’ve found that home-baked biscotti, while still crumbly, are not the tooth breakers that the manufactured ones can be.

Because bite-sized foods are so charming, I recently prepared some biscotti bambini—biscottini—as a hostess gift. I love that you don’t have to make a career out of eating one. [Read more…]