Little Wine Cookies / Biscottini al Vino
Easy
This unusual and fun-to-make yeast bread looks more like a rustic cake with its baked meringue topping and covering of colored sprinkles. It is part of an ancient Umbrian tradition that involves a young woman about to be married, presenting this cake to her fiancé on Easter Sunday.
Alkermes liqueur, said to have its origins in the Renaissance, is the ingredient that turns the crumb a soft pink hue; it’s made from cinnamon, cloves, sugar, and cochineal. Alkermes is available in Italian specialty shops. Use cranberry liqueur as a substitute. MAKES TWO LOAVES
This recipe was featured on Season 25 - Episode 2508.
Comments
D. Lynn Carmichael
Enlightening show, Mary Ann. I saw it for the first time several weeks ago and realized that Alchermes was the mystery missing ingredient that my tastebuds remember from long ago in Zuppe Inglese … began searching, but none to be found in the usual places in the SF Bay Area. Finally found an old discussion about it on Chowhound, which led to my ‘discovery’ of the renowned Corti Bros. market in Sacramento. Waiting for a nice cool weekend to drive over there from Silicon Valley.
Transplated Torontonian
p.s.: Still miss the signature “Italian trifle”, that I think contained a bit of Alchermes, at downtown Toronto’s old Florentine Court (Lo Presti Bros.) — heavenly cuisine.