As I sit here watching the footage of the Chilean miners being rescued, I am struck by my own limitations (BTW, I generally like to focus on myself during situations like these). I joked with several people today that I couldn’t even stand to be in that rescue pod for 15 minutes *above ground.* And if there were a psychological test administered before you were allowed to go underground, I’m quite sure checking the box that says “sometimes I get panicky in the check out line at the grocery store” would disqualify me immediately.
I am just not the type of person you want around in a crisis. Actually, I’m not the type of person you want around during a mildly stressful flu shot.
But perhaps it’s not just OK, but necessary, that some people run the race and some people bake cookies for the finish line. Perhaps this is the reason that the rescuers have the strength to strap themselves into a cage and go thousands of feet below the ground into a caved-in mine, while their wives clutch the children and pictures of the Virgin Mary (The heathen I am, I generally clutch a Bloody Mary). And here in the land of the soft, perhaps this is the reason that my husband flies all over the country, talks in front of hundreds of people with ease, and I stay home and bake biscotti. In short, my husband is a tremendous risk taker and I am a tremendous risk averter.
It’s not that I’m not brave or strong (I gave birth to two children, you know) nor do I think that women are incapable of strapping themselves in and rescuing 33 miners. Hell, some of us might like to go down that hole simply to get some quiet time. The issue has more to do with roles than it does with gender. Once you have children, doesn’t it just seem that both parents can’t simultaneously go balls to the wall anymore? Doesn’t it seem that someone has to be the rock while the other person is in the hard place? Children demand routine and stability and comfort. So when one parent is down a mine shaft or on a plane to L.A., the other one has to be pouring the cereal at 8:00 AM sharp and reading the favorite two (OK, three) stories at 8:00 PM sharp.
Maybe I am risk averse because that’s who I have to be.
Or maybe that’s how I justify the fact that I enjoy eating biscotti and hate enclosed spaces.
Spiced Whole Grain Pumpkin Seed Biscotti with Cranberries and White Chocolate
Makes 15-18 biscotti
2 1/4 cups whole wheat pastry flour
1 1/2 t baking powder
3/4 t salt
1 star anise pod
1-1 inch piece of cinnamon stick
1 small piece of whole nutmeg (about the size of a nickel, or 1/4 t pre-ground)
1/2 cup butter (1 stick), softened
1/3 cup sugar
1 vanilla bean (or 1 t vanilla extract)
2 eggs, at room temperature
1/2 cup dried cranberries
3/4 cup pumpkin seeds (hulled and dry roasted or toasted)
4 ounces white chocolate, chopped1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. In a medium mixing bowl, combine the whole wheat pastry flour, baking powder, and salt.
3. Using a clean spice or coffee grinder (I have a second coffee grinder that I use exclusively for spices), grind the star anise pod, the cinnamon stick, and the piece of whole nutmeg until they are a fine powder. Add this spice mixture to the flour mixture. (If you like your biscotti extra spiced, double up on the spices. Alternatively, if you don’t want to grind your own spices, just make a combination of cinnamon, nutmeg, or other spices like anise seed to equal 1 t.)
4. In a large mixing bowl with an electric mixer, beat the softened butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, and mix until thoroughly incorporated. Split the vanilla bean in half and, using the back of a knife, scrape the seeds from both sides of the pod. Add seeds to butter and egg mixture and beat to incorporate.
5. Add the flour/spice mixture to the butter mixture in two additions and beat until just combined. Switch to a wooden spoon or spatula and stir to make sure the flour is incorporated. Stir in cranberries and pumpkin seeds.
6. Turn dough onto parchment lined baking sheet and pat into a long loaf, approximately 3.5 inches by 15 inches. Bake loaf for about 35 minutes, until just golden. Remove from oven and allow to cool for about 20 minutes.
7. Using a very sharp knife, carefully cut individual biscotti from the loaf — each about 3/4 inch. Place the biscotti, cut side down, on the parchment lined sheet. Bake for 10-12 minutes and flip. Bake 10-12 minutes more and remove from oven (about 20 minutes total for the second stage of baking). Remove biscotti from sheet and cool on racks.
8. Place chopped white chocolate in a double boiler to melt. You can also use the microwave at about 50% power. When biscotti are completely cool, drizzle with melted white chocolate. Place in refrigerator until chocolate is hardened. Remove from refrigerator and store biscotti in a tightly sealed container.
