Kenmore, WA

JAMES LUPORI YOUR FRIENDLY NEIGHBORHOOD REALTOR COOKS BISCOTTI

I was a professional cook for many years prior to my life as a Realtor. Some of my fondest memories were in the kitchen helping my mom with meals. I began cooking in restaurants when I was 16. Over the years I’ve learned how to prepare a huge array of cuisines and during the holiday season I love to bake Italian Biscotti or “twice cooked” cookies.

A lot of people ask me how to make biscotti because they seem complicated to most people. The fact is, biscotti aren’t hard to make. They do tend to be ingredient intensive, yet, the ingredients are fairly easy to purchase at your local grocery store.

I’ve wanted to do a visual explanation of the process for a long time. Finally (because we’ve been snowed-in for the last two days) I had time to document how I bake biscotti! Really, I’m really excited about this. Let’s start with the recipe:

4 whole eggs

1lb (500 g) all purpose flour

12 oz (350 g) sugar

7 oz (200 g) whole almonds

1 tblsp unsalted butter

1 oz (15 g) oil

pinch of salt (aprox 1/8 tsp)

2 tsp baking powder

Anise seeds or fresh vanilla bean or both

Heat the oven to 350 degrees (180 C)

Place the flour on a work surface, make a well, add the salt, sugar, butter & oil. Beat the eggs in the well then incorporate the flour little by little mixing the ingredients together. At the end, add the almonds and the baking powder. Work the dough until smooth. At this point, I divide the dough into 4 pieces and then divide the first large piece in half. Roll the dough into two long pieces (ropes). Place them on a baking sheet, then brush them with a beaten egg and sprinkle with any large sugar you have. Bake for about 40 minutes at 350 until golden-brown. Take them out of the oven (leave the oven on). Let the baked logs cool for a few minutes, then cut each log into 1/2 inch pieces. Put the biscotti on the baking sheet and bake again to dry for about 10 minutes. And there you go…………………..yummy!

I’ve created a slide show showing you how to bake bisccotti. Just click on the picture below to see how it’s done. I sincerely hope you try to make biscotti in the near future. They are wonderful with coffee, tea and wines. My wife loves to dip biscotti in wine. In Tuscany, my relatives will serve biscotti with a sweet wine called vin santo. It’s absolutely wonderful.

HAVE A MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Yes, the picture above should give you an idea of how much snow it takes to TOTALLY PARALYZE a major metropolitan area: Seattle. You can’t imagine how many calls I’ve received from friends around the country who simply can’t believe what a bunch of weather wimps we are here in the Northwest. I won’t even dignify them by repeating the dispariging things they say. Heck, almost made me cry!

Seriously, the Seattle area is NOT set up to deal with snow. The topography is quite hilly and we are subject to a complex array of wind conditions and bodies of water. Not only do we receive cold wet winds off the Pacific Ocean and Puget Sound, but we also get blasted by uber-freezing gusts from Canada. When the winds and moisture come together as snow, the locals head indoors and hibernate. What’s more, there are virtually no snow plows and the roads are rarely sanded (never salted). If you must drive in these conditions, you’re taking your life into your own hands. I don’t recommend it.

Today I had to brave the frozen roads and hills of Kenmore to mail Christmas Cards and pick up some gifts for my favorite person (the wife!!!). She owes me BIG TIME! But, before heading out I had to shovel snow from the driveway, something I haven’t done in many, many years (since 1990!). I didn’t do too badly:

I'm suffering from a bit of cabin fever. The snow and frigid temperatures here in Kenmore and the greater Seattle area have basically put a halt to normal life. I've had too much time to think about all the chaos and grim news out there. I'm going a little bonkers and my wife is about ready to strangle me. Well, things turned around yesterday morning in an interesting way. I read two obituaries of two icons of American culture, and listened to a radio program that re-calibrated my thinking. I'd like to share some thoughts (and the quote of the week) with you:

W. MARK FELT - aka DEEP THROAT

W. Mark Felt who died this week at the age of 95 may be one of the most influential figures of modern American history. His role as the anonymous informant to the Washington Post reporters, John Woodward and Carl Bernstein, led to the eventual disgrace and resignation of President Richard Nixon. This is heady stuff to me. I was in junior high school when the Watergate scandal occurred and, in many ways, it shaped my perspective of power and government. It's amazing that he remained anonymous for almost 30 years after his involvement.......................But then I read about the passing of yet another icon from my generation:

MAJEL BARRETT aka NURSE CHRISTINE CHAPEL in Star Trek

Majel Barret died this week at the age of 76. She was a constant fixture in the original Star Trek series (the best of all the series!) and appeared in many of the subsequent Star Trek spin offs. It's amazing how influential this science fiction program has been over the years. I was saddened to hear of Majel's passing and this made me reflect on growing up during the 1960's and how the world has changed.

Then, I listened to a powerful interview this morning which, you guessed it, provides the quote of the week:

WILLIARD WIRTZ - Former Secretary of Labor under Lindon Johnson & JFK

Willard Wirtz is 96 years old and was a very important person, yet, I'm sure very few of you know who he is. Here's a snippet from Wikipedia:

William Willard Wirtz (born March 14, 1912) is a former U.S. administrator, cabinet officer, attorney, and law professor. He served as the Secretary of Labor between 1962 and 1969 under the administrations of Presidents John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson.

Recently, Mr. Wirtz wrote a short memoir entitled "In the Rearview Mirror," which is a reflection of his career in government and life with his wife of 66 years, Jane. Yesterday, on NPR's program, Saturday Morning Edition, Mr. Wirtz was materfully interviewed by Scott Simon. During the course of the interview Scott asked him an obvious question from whence our quote of the day comes:

Scott Simon: "Mr. Wirtz, what's it like to be 96?

Mr. Wirtz: "I don't recommend it. Jane died six years ago. That takes the fun out of it."

Talk about a powerfully honest answer! He goes on to describe how his friends have all died off, he can't walk anymore and he isn't quite as sharp as he used to be. It was sobering to listen to him. You see, our culture has a tendency to measure our lives by how long we live. We have this idea that there is something magical about living forever. I have included the whole interview (only 6 minutes) below. I highly recommend you listen to it.

This interview really made me think hard about the way the world works. Mr. Wirtz points out that Life will eventually take away everything it gives us. It's a simple fact of Life. From a larger perspective, as a nation, we are living at a time when some of our most cherished beliefs and possessions are being taken from us. The world has changed and we must make choices. The important thing is how we respond to this challenge individually and as a people. I sincerely hope you have the opportunity to fill your life with powerful experiences and deep love. Rock on!