…and just tasted the pecans and I completely forgot the sugar 
hoping my in-oven application will somehow magically work
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Day 2 of the biscotti bake-off.
This is the David Lebovitz recipe (half a batch). The biggest differences between this one and yesterday’s bake (Union Square Café) are less sugar, less chocolate, and a complete lack of fat. The result is a rock-hard dunker which doesn’t linger long on the tongue.
I made a few minor changes: I doubled the salt (does DL have a thing about salt?), used espresso powder in lieu of almond extract, and subbed hazelnuts for the almonds. This is a very stiff dough – I ended up having to hand-knead in the nuts and the chocolate (with well greased counter and hands). I gave the first bake 30 minutes at 350 degrees, sliced while warmish, and gave the second bake another 30 minutes at 350.
Apples and oranges, folks. Both biscotti are tasty and both recipes are solid. While maybe I have a slight preference personally for the DL version, for the Christmas party I think I’ll go with the Union Square Café version, as 1) it won’t require a beverage to consume, and 2) it’s appeal may be broader than the Italian style. I’ll also be baking a batch of my usual Christmas biscotti (also American style, but with oil instead of butter): cranberry and pistachio with a white chocolate drizzle.
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Kiddo and I baked these Lofthouse-style soft cakey frosted cookies. I haven’t tried one yet but they he enjoyed his. The dough is a sticky pain.
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So pretty and tempting!
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Mulled-wine-pear-butter-filled linzers. Recipe by Bronwen Wyatt.
Finally tasting these as they were meant to be eaten. As I hoped, they are a home run.
Cookies were made many days ago now, but the flavor has only improved. I filled them two hours or so before serving; next time I’ll shoot for four or five hours beforehand for maximum melding of flavors.
I have a ton of this butter to play with now 
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Did you candy the kumquats?
Yay!!!
They turned out great!
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Very pretty though!
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Yes, I did, Claudia Fleming recipe , very pleased with them! From her book, “The Last Course”, I’ve been making this recipe for a long time, never fails.
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I can’t find my post with my pear query, but here’s what I ended up deciding on. I went a little rogue. I wanted a tart, but wasn’t really interested in the pear/almond profile that came up most when I searched. I was feeling more like pear/vanilla was calling to me. So I have a pate sucree tart shell blind baking in the oven. Pears have been poached with vanilla, lemon peel, and cinnamon sticks, as well as a healthy splash of bourbon. (I just reduced the poaching liquid to use as a simple syrup of sorts with some bourbon concoction tomorrow, in between drams of coquito.) Tomorrow I will make vanilla pastry cream. I’ll put the pastry cream in the shell, top with the poached pears thinly sliced artfully (one can hope) placed atop the pastry cream. Looking forward to seeing how this comes out. If it’s a flop, there’s no shortage of cookies, and aforementioned coquito heals all that ails.
Pate sucree :
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This is going to be great!
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Finished product-
They’re gorgeous - but this is a sweeeeeeet cookie. Not sure it’s my fave ccc recipe. I’ll have a proper bite when they cool.
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I have that book! Must look it up
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Ready for dessert today, rummed up and glazed…move over Paris ! Cherries were macerated for just a few days so they keep their crunch. The center is actually filled with pitted , macerated cherries except for the few on top. Now to get it to its destination!
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Thank you!
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And the last cake, Verbena with raspberries. The cake crumb is a pale green, dotted with red raspberries. A raspberry coulis will be served with the cake.
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That is so appealing! I can’t even stack that well…
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