Biscotti
I'm considering buying one or more biscotti pans. Is it possible to bake two logs in one pan. Sometimes I want a smaller cookie?
Thanks for your input.
Tags: Biscotti pans
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Replies to This Discussion
- Reply by mrs.chiu on November 17, 2011 at 4:22 pm
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I don't understand why anyone would need a biscotti pan. They are so easy to mold and shape to make any size and I'd think a pan would restrict too much. When I make biscotti I make a lot and use a silpat lined baking sheet 20x14 to bake about 3 long logs at a time.
The dough is very pliable and easy to get nice and neat if you wet your hands, then shake off excess water before patting them down and shaping them. Just a thought...
Mrs.Chiu
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- Reply by elsa on November 17, 2011 at 5:09 pm
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I agree with Mrs.Chiu. I have baked biscotti for several years, especially using Maida Heatter's Brand New Book of Great Cookies. I shape the dough into logs, wrap in plastic and freeze for several hours or until ready to bake. Usually one log will fit on a cookie sheet and is baked the first time - they spread. Then the logs are cut into the biscotti shape and baked again.
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- Reply by karen_noll on November 18, 2011 at 5:50 am
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I have to agree with the other commenters. My kitchen is really small, and I just don't have room for all the equipment and gadgets I may like to have, but don't really need. A regular parchment-lined sheet pan always works well for biscotti, and you can always change the size of the logs to make any size cookie you want. That being said, I went through a period a number of years ago when I was first learning to make bread where I felt I had to have every specialized pan, gadget, and gizmo KAF sells.......got over that one in a hurry, LOL! I even converted part of my walk-in utility closet to accommodate the kitchen overflow, and every so often when cleaning out a drawer or cabinet I'll come across something and wonder just what was I thinking when I bought that. I mean, how often does one really need a mini mandoline to slice garlic......there's gotta be a support group for this, don't you think? My new rule is "buy what you need, use what you have".
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- Reply by GinaG on November 21, 2011 at 2:17 pm
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Karen, Karen, Karen_noll...
I couldn't have said it better myself. The support group is a brilliant idea, too! Gee, I just really don't like mono-taskers.
But if someone gave me a biscotti pan for a present, I'd feel obliged to use it. Maybe not for biscotti, though! We all already have a biscotti pan, some of us have lots!...A baking sheet!=O)
GinaG
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- Reply by liz95688 on February 09, 2012 at 7:19 pm
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Just used the biscotti pan for the first time. The end product is flat instead of domed if u were to shape it and put it on a cookie sheet. I agree with everyone else and the next time I will go back to my cookie sheet cos the presentation is nicer. I'll find another use for the Biscotti pan.
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- Reply by frick on February 09, 2012 at 8:24 pm
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Karen & Gina, well said. I have baked biscotti for years and they come out beautifully on a sheet pan. Once I acquired a bale of parchment, I began using that but it really isn't necessary.
I have a kitchen like Karen Noll's and converted a minute utility room (moved the washer & dryer) to the garage, in order to put in some counter space and cabinets which are essentially a "baking annex" though the kitchen still houses the oven. After all, I need all that trotting back and forth in order to be able to consume things like biscotti.
As for single use items, seriously gals, bundt pans don't count, do they?
And as for the mini-mandoline to slice garlic, I mean REALLY! Why would someone think I needed that. Consequently, it is in the Goodwill pile.
Happy baking. Tonight I'm making Moldavian Corn and Feta Cheese Bread (for those new to the circle, it's cornbread but rich with feta and sour cream, and almost good enough for a meal all by itself.
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- Reply by cwcdesign on February 10, 2012 at 4:01 am
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No, frick, a bundt pan doesn't count as a single use pan. It is a necessary part of the baking arsenal :-)
I do like it, however, when you've gone and gotten a single use pan (like the hamburger bun pan) and discover you can find more uses for it. I started using it for making double size scones and they come out great. Then this fall, I think PJ came up with the idea of using it for mini-pies (haven't tried that yet). So now I have 3 very different things I can make with it!
As to the original question about the biscotti pan, I like making the biscotti on the baking sheets as others have mentioned.
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- Reply by mumpy on February 10, 2012 at 8:59 am
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i made hundreds of biscotti for our church bazaar last fall without a biscotti pan....i like being able to adjust the size to my own preference...my basic recipe calls for the dough to be divided into 2 loaves before baking....i normally make 3 loaves of dough and sometimes make 4 loaves for mini-biscotti, which my grandsons adore.
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- Reply by GinaG on February 10, 2012 at 4:08 pm
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Frick!
A bundt pan is NOT a monotasker, nononono!
I love to use it to make beautiful ice molds and iced desserts: Gorgeous.
I have filled it with water or juice and scattered citrus leaves and herbs or edible splashes of flowers and set the frozen mass in a punch-bowl: Gorgeous!
You can also freeze different color ices/sorbets/gelato, etc. in them, it makes for a beautiful presentation and it's a nice alternative to multiple loaf pans when you serve a crowd.
Another thing I've done is use the frozen sculpture to keep a dish or offering chilled:
Set it on a plate or platter of rock salt. Upside-down or right side-up, depending on the look you want. Rest the bowl or plate on top of the frozen mold. It works! I have sometimes used a dash of food coloring and frozen decorative things inside to fit my theme.
I have made lots of different things other than cakes in a bundt pan, it's fun! And as others have somewhat hinted, what appears to be a mono-tasker may not be: It just needs to be looked at in a different way.
The definition IMO of a mono-tasker is that item which can only serve one purpose otherwise easily served by something else which does more.
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- Reply by GinaG on February 10, 2012 at 4:17 pm
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And just one more thing:
If you like using Feta cheese, try this for a special, easy-breezy-cheesy, very TASTY treat:
Place the feta cheese and some fresh minced garlic in your FP or mini-chopper. Whir until smooth and creamy. This makes a nice spread or can be used to flavor other things like mayo, salad dressing or stirred into whipped potatoes, spread over grilled corn, etc.
If you like, along with or in lieu of the garlic, try some kind of pepper like an Anaheim or even roasted bell pepper.
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- Reply by cwcdesign on February 11, 2012 at 4:26 am
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So now do I get rid of my muffin pans? (hehe)
We prefer our meatloaf in a loaf so we can slice it up for sandwiches. I'm not "fancy" enough to make ice things in it, but I'm sure some other ideas will come along.
I did get the hot dog pan because I'm a New England girl born and raised and you can't find that kind of bun anywhere else. However, someone had suggested making corn dogs with the pan, which we tried - I made our favorite cornbread recipe and then we put cooked hot dogs in, sliced between the buns and Voila! ungreasy corn dogs and we froze some and they still worked! Then there was the idea of making "cake buns" vanilla or chocolate. See PJ's blog
http://www.kingarthurflour.com/blog/2010/06/27/hot-dog-this-bun-pan-does...
I thought I might try the faux twinkie recipe in it.
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- Reply by GinaG on February 11, 2012 at 6:44 pm
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No, Carol, don't ever let the muffin pans go: Mono-taskers, NOT!
I use the muffin pans for meatballs, of all things. The beautiful rounds don't wind up with a flat-bottom because they're secured by their little compartment! I have also used the muffin tin for individual pommes diane; eggplant parmigiana stacks and iced treats.
And you already figured out that the hot dog pan doesn't have to be a monotasker, either, see?
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