Anise Rusks Recipes

Steps:

• 1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. 2. In a large mixing bowl, thoroughly mix the dry ingredients. 3. Combine all the wet ingredients, pour them into the dry ingredients, and stir until you have a soft dough, similar to biscuit dough. 4. Turn the dough onto a well-floured surface and roll or pat it to about a 1/2 inch thickness. 5. Cut the dough into rectangles about 2 by 4 inches. Bake the rusks about 2 inches apart on buttered baking sheet for about 25 minutes until the tops are crisping and browning a little. 6. Loosely pile the rusks on a baking sheet and keep them in a 200 degree oven all day or all night (about 12 hours) to dry. The finished rusks should be very dry and hard. Cool and store in an airtight container. Rusks will keep for weeks. ALTERNATIVES: Oatmeal-Raisin Rusks: Reduce the white flour to 1 1/2 cups and add 2 cups rolled oats and 1/2 cup currants or chopped raisins. Almond Rusks: Add 1 cup chopped almonds and omit the cinnamon. Peanut Rusks: Add 1 cup coarsely chopped peanuts. Anise Rusks: Omit the cinnamon and almond extract and add 2 tsp. pure anise extract

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375F.
• Line bottom of 9 x 13 pan with wax paper or parchment paper and set aside.
• In medium bowl, combine egg yolks and half of the sugar using an electric mixer.
• Beat til thick and lemon coloured about 3 minutes.
• Beat in extract and orange peel.
• Set mixer on low speed and gradually beat in flour and water, beating just until combined.
• Set aside.
• In separate bowl, using clean beaters, beat egg whites until foamy.
• Gradually add remaining sugar and beat until stiff peaks form.
• Spoon 2 heaping tablespoons of beaten whites into mixture to loosen batter.
• Fold in remaining whites, 1/3 at a time.
• Pour batter into paper lined pan and using a spatula smooth top.
• Bake until top is browned 20-25 minutes.
• Remove from oven, and reduce temperature to 250F.
• Using a knife or metal spatula, loosen edges of cake from pan.
• Invert cake onto wire rack.
• Peel off paper, and set cake right side up on cutting board.
• Cut into four equal sections.
• Then cut each section in half and each half into four equal slices.
• Arrange slices on a cookie sheet and bake until golden and crisp (1 - 1 1/2 hours).