In approximately 7 days, there will be no more baking or broiling or simmering or sauteing in my house.

This is because in approximately 7 days my kitchen will be in shambles.

I’ve been wanting to remodel the usable but not very attractive kitchen in my 60-year-old home since I moved in about 5 years ago. Now that it’s actually happening, I’m feeling the days ticking down with both excitement and apprehension. How am I going to make it an entire month (this being a very optimistic estimate of how long our DIY makeover is going to take) without an oven or a stove-top or even a kitchen sink?

So, while I should be prepping for the remodel, I’ve been baking. In part, because I’ve gotta clear out the fridge and cupboards anyway. But also because I feel like I need to get my fill now, to tide me over until my shiny new kitchen is ready to be broken in.

So I finally pulled King Arthur Flour’s “Whole Grain Baking,” a book I’d received as a gift over a year ago, off my shelf and tried a couple of whole-grain cookies. Both turned out well, but this was my favorite of the two. If you’ve only ever had prepackaged biscotti – the kind that’s hard as rocks – you’ll be pleasantly surprised the taste and tender, crunchy texture of fresh biscotti. You’d never know they’re made with whole-wheat flour.

Butter Brickle Biscotti
Makes 21 biscotti

6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) unsalted butter
2/3 cup sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 large eggs
2 cups (8 ounces) whole-wheat flour
1 cup (5 1/2 ounces) toffee bits, such as Heath English Toffee Bits

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease (or line with parchment paper) a baking sheet that’s at least 16 inches long.

To prepare the dough: Beat the butter and sugar in a medium bowl until smooth. Beat in the baking powder, salt and vanilla. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition and scraping the bowl. Add the flour and toffee bits, beating gently until the dough is well mixed. The dough will be soft and sticky, but will hold its shape when you drop it from a spoon.

To shape the dough: Scrap the dough onto the prepared baking sheet. Wet your fingers, and pat and smooth the dough into a log about 14 inches long, 2 1/2 inches wide and 3/4 inch thick. Make it as smooth and even as possible: this will yield the most uniform cookies.

To bake the biscotti: Bake the log for 25 minutes, and remove it from the oven. Reduce the oven temperature to 325 degrees. After 15 minutes, spritz the log lightly with water. Let it rest for 5 minutes, then use a serrated knife to cut it into crosswise slices, 3/4 inch thick. For longer biscotti, cut diagonal slices. The log has a tendency to crumble, so use the serrated knife to carefully cut it as slowly and gently as necessary, beginning the cut at the edge farthest from you (rather than on the top) and drawing the knife toward you as you gently saw.

Arrange the slices, upright, on the baking sheet. Return the baking sheet to the oven, and bake until biscotti are very light, golden brown, 30 to 35 minutes. Remove them from the oven and let cool right on the pan.

Per biscotti: 137 calories, 6 g fat, 9 g complex carbohydrates, 11 g whole grains, 1 g dietary fiber, 186 mg sodium

Source: “Whole Grain Baking” (Countryman) by King Arthur Flour