Also known as unicetti, anginetti or taralli dolce to the many devotees of Strip District institution Enrico’s Biscotti Company, these cookies are featured in a new cookbook, My Black Book, authored by its founder. Larry Laguttata, also known as the Biscotti Baron, shares not only pasticceria know-how in his gorgeous little tome: there’s also a warm sense of nostalgia about turn-of-the-last- century Italian life in our fair ‘Burgh. The book is a perfect holiday gift.

To purchase the book, enricosbiscotti.com.

ITALIAN LOVE KNOTS RECIPE

INGREDIENTS

3/4 cup melted butter

3/4 cup sugar

1 tbsp vanilla

3 eggs

4 cups flour

2 tbsp baking powder

1 pinch of salt

1/2 cup hot water

2 cups powdered sugar

1/2 tsp anise extract

Milk

Colored sprinkles

INSTRUCTIONS

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

1. Heat the butter until completely melted.

2. Cream together the melted butter and sugar.

3. Add vanilla, eggs, flour, baking powder, and salt.

4. Mix at low speed for about 30 seconds, then add HOT water and combine well. The dough will be tacky.

5. On an un-floured board, take a piece of dough weighing about 1 ounce and roll the dough into a log about 2 inches long. Taking the ends of the log, bring one end over the other, then underneath and through the middle, like tying a knot.

6. Place on a prepared baking sheet and bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes. Let them cool completely.

7. In a bowl, place the powdered sugar and anise extract. With a whisk, drizzle in milk a little at a time until you have an icing consistency that suits you. The amount of milk you use will determine the thickness: some like a thick icing, some a simple glaze. Your kitchen, your rules.

8. Dip the top of the cookie into the glaze and sprinkle the top with colored sprinkles.

   Makes 48 cookies

Recipe by Larry Laguttata / Styling by Anna Calabrese / Photography by Dave Bryce

Recipe excerpted with permission from Larry Laguttata’s cookbook, My Black Book: Enrico Biscotti Company, available at enricobiscotti.com. 

Try these other delicious cookie recipes:

Don’t miss a single delicious thing:

Subscribe to TABLE Magazine here!

We are all admirers of the holiday tradition of the Feast of the Seven Fishes, with its festive reminder that the flavors of the sea are satisfying not just in summer, but also through the depths of winter. Thinking forward to the many weeks of winter after the holidays, six Pittsburgh chefs took us on a deep dive into seafood-powered dishes that will brighten the season of chill and gloom with their memorable flavors. In keeping with this issue’s focus on Lake Erie wines, TABLE Magazine’s wine expert Adam Knoerzer pairs each dish with wine from the region.

As the saying goes, the secret is in the sauce. Morcilla’s Chef Nate Hobart instills layers of flavors into the broth of his Sopa de Mariscos, starting with onions, carrots, and fennel, several herbs and spices, saffron, tomatoes, and lobster stock. Upon this rich base the rest of the dish builds to a crescendo with salt cod, calamari, monkfish, tuna, shrimp, and a flurry of mussels. The result is as beautiful to look at as it is delicious to eat. You will want plenty of sourdough bread to soak up every drop.

SOPA DE MARISCOS RECIPE

 Serves 4

INGREDIENTS

2 large onions

4 cloves garlic

1 bay leaf

4 oz olive oil

2 tbsp pimentón

1 tbsp Aleppo pepper

Pinch of saffron

1 carrot, diced

1 head fennel, diced

6 plum tomatoes, diced

32 oz seafood stock (lobster stock, fish stock, clam juice)

16 oz San Marzano tomato puree

12 oz salt cod, soaked overnight and cut into 1-inch cubes

1/2 lb calamari, tubes and tentacles sliced

1/2 lb monkfish, cut into 1-inch cubes

1/2 lb albacore tuna, cut into 1-inch cubes

24 mussels

8 large shrimp

4 oz dry sherry

2 lemons, juiced

1 bunch parsley, chopped

Salt to taste

Warm sourdough bread, sliced into 1-inch slices

INSTRUCTIONS

1.     In a large pot, begin by sweating the onions, garlic, and the bay leaf in the olive oil over medium

2.     heat, seasoning with 1 tablespoon salt.

3.     Once the onions and the garlic are soft and translucent (about 15 minutes), add the spices, carrots, and fennel, continuing to sweat for another 5 minutes.

4.     Add the plum tomatoes and cook for another 5 minutes, and then add the lobster stock,

5.     San Marzano tomatoes, salt cod, calamari, and monkfish. Bring to a boil then reduce to a

6.     simmer for about 20 minutes.

7.     Once the calamari and salt cod are tender add the tuna and cook for another 5 minutes. Add the mussels and shrimp and cover with a lid; cook until all the mussels are open.

8.     To finish add the sherry, lemon juice, and chopped parsley. Season with salt to taste. Enjoy with the sourdough bread.

SUGGESTED WINE PAIRING

Johnson Estate Bubbly: Let the effervescence of this sparkler pep up the palate between slurps of the flavor-packed broth of this soup. The rounder floral notes of the wine go hand-in-hand with the meatiness of the monkfish and other seafoods that create a kaleidoscope of flavors.

RECIPE BY CHEF NATE HOBART, MORCILLA / STYLING BY ANNA CALABRESE / PHOTOGRAPHY BY DAVE BRYCE

TRY THESE OTHER WINTER SEAFOOD RECIPES:

Grilled Pumpkin Swordfish with Aleppo Pepper Oscar

Seared Salmon with Borscht Risotto & Horseradish Crème Fraîche

Cod & Potato Chowder with Coconut Milk, Lime & Cilantro 

Steamed Striped Bass with Ginger & Scallions

Roasted Oysters with Cornbread, Leek & Banana Pepper Crumble

We are all admirers of the holiday tradition of the Feast of the Seven Fishes, with its festive reminder that the flavors of the sea are satisfying not just in summer, but also through the depths of winter. Thinking forward to the many weeks of winter after the holidays, six Pittsburgh chefs took us on a deep dive into seafood-powered dishes that will brighten the season of chill and gloom with their memorable flavors. In keeping with this issue’s focus on Lake Erie wines, TABLE Magazine’s wine expert Adam Knoerzer pairs each dish with wine from the region.

Please don’t tell Mediterra Cafe’s Chef Aniceto Sousa, but across several days after this photo was taken, we enjoyed his chowder for lunch, and we were very sorry when it was gone. The mild heat from the jalapeños sparks up the soup’s creamy coconut milk base, itself enriched with peppers, celery, garlic, and onions. Cod adds its salty profile, and a splash of fresh lime at the end makes it bright. Like us, you will never tire of this nourishing and warming dish.

COD & POTATO CHOWDER WITH COCONUT MILK, LIME & CILANTRO RECIPE

Makes 2 ½  quarts

INGREDIENTS

4  tbsp EVOO

1 cup chopped onions

1/2 cup celery, diced

1/2 cup carrot, diced

3 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 cup red bell peppers, diced

1/2 cup yellow bell peppers, diced

2 tbsp chopped jalapeño

1 tbsp + 1 tsp kosher salt

1/2 tsp black pepper

1 1/2 cups diced fresh tomatoes

2 tbsp Old Bay seasoning

2 cans clam juice or fish broth (13.5 oz each)

2 cans unsweetened coconut milk (13.5 oz each)

2 cups diced potatoes

1 cup corn, frozen or fresh (optional)

2 lb cod fillet, diced (can also use haddock, halibut, or shrimp)

2 tbsp white rice

1/4 tsp black lime or substitute fresh lime zest

1 cup cilantro, chopped

1/2 cup sliced scallion

Hot sauce to taste

INSTRUCTIONS

1.     Heat a 4-quart pot over medium heat.

2.     Add olive oil  to the pot and sweat onions, celery, carrots, garlic, peppers, and jalapeño.

3.     Add half of the salt and season with black pepper. Cook for 5-6minutes stirring often until vegetables are softened.

4.     Add tomatoes and Old Bay, cooking 4-5 minutes, stirring often.

5.     Add clam juice, coconut milk, and potatoes, (corn-optional). Cook until potatoes are tender.

6.     Add fish, rice, lime, and remaining salt; turn down heat and simmer slowly until fish and rice are cooked. Rice acts as a thickener. Stir occasionally.

7.     Add cilantro, scallion, and hot sauce to taste. Serve with baguette or grilled bread.

SUGGESTED WINE PAIRING

Mazza Riesling: The green apple and citrus notes of the wine help cut the richness of the coconut milk while accentuating the jalapeño, cilantro, and lime that highlight the soup.

RECIPE BY CHEF ANICETO SOUSA, MEDITERRA CAFÉ / STYLING BY ANNA CALABRESE / PHOTOGRAPHY BY DAVE BRYCE

TRY THESE OTHER WINTER SEAFOOD RECIPES:

Grilled Pumpkin Swordfish with Aleppo Pepper Oscar

Sopa de Mariscos

Seared Salmon with Borscht Risotto & Horseradish Crème Fraîche

Steamed Striped Bass with Ginger & Scallions

Roasted Oysters with Cornbread, Leek & Banana Pepper Crumble