Saturday, March 20, 2010

Happy Persian New Year Biscotti!

Ahhh...spring! The magnolias, cherry blossoms, and daffodils are in full bloom ... I love Persian New Year (called "Nowrouz" in Farsi), which begins on the vernal equinox marking the beginning of spring, which often coincides with my birthday. But this year, Nowrouz is today, and my birthday is tomorrow. My dear Persian friend Parandeh's birthday is the day after mine. So this time of year is always filled with great joy and gives me many reasons to celebrate.

Since Parandeh lives way on the other side of the country, this time of year also makes me miss her terribly. It's been decades since the last time we spent our birthdays and Nowrouz together. So when I stumbled upon this incredible recipe for Biscotti with a Persian Twist on a blog called "West of Persia" written by Bria Takavoli, it seemed like the perfect thing to cheer me up.


The combination of cranberries, pistachio, and cardamom in a nearly fat-free cookie is even more delicious than it sounds. They'll be really wonderful with nice cup of chai.

A big kheilie mamnoon and Nowrouz mobarak to you, Bria. And Tavolodat mobarak va Nowrouz mobarak, Parandeh, azizam! To everyone else, Happy Spring!
at

9 comments:

  1. jessicaMarch 20, 2010 at 8:34 PM

    Thank you for the recipe link! I love cardamom, and these sound really good. Happy Birthday!

    ReplyDelete
  2. The VeganMarch 21, 2010 at 12:28 AM

    That really does look tasty!
    Oh and HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!!!
    :-)

    ReplyDelete
  3. JustineMarch 21, 2010 at 11:49 AM

    Can't wait to try this. I love biscotti! Happy Birthday!

    ReplyDelete
  4. sarahxvxMarch 21, 2010 at 2:05 PM

    HAPPY BIRTHDAY GAIL! Thank you for the wonderful biscotti recipe.

    ReplyDelete
  5. parandehMarch 22, 2010 at 10:39 AM

    Gail Azzizam,
    Thank you so much for being so thoughtfull as usual.You know we are apart, but our heart is always close together.Your Biscotti looks so delicious!!Yami
    Happy B.Day my dear friend and wish you all the health and happiness for the years to come.
    Halakam ,
    Parandeh

    ReplyDelete
  6. VegiegailMarch 22, 2010 at 2:42 PM

    Thank you everyone for the sweet birthday wishes! I do hope you enjoy this delightful treat and have a spectacular spring season!

    ReplyDelete
  7. UnknownMarch 26, 2010 at 7:55 AM

    let me start by wishing you a very happy birthday then make my comment.
    i would like to remind you that , new year ( new day ) in persian is spelled norooz and the spelling of nowrooz is wrong. please forgive me .

    ReplyDelete
  8. AnonymousMarch 26, 2010 at 7:40 PM

    I believe your thought of remembering Persian New rooz was more beautiful than spelling it in right way.

    ReplyDelete
  9. VegiegailApril 3, 2010 at 9:56 AM

    Dear E, thank you very much for the kind birthday wishes and Happy Norooz! You might be amazed to know that I actually know how to pronounce "norooz." Therefore, it would have been my instinct to spell it exactly as you suggest. But since I was linking to a recipe on the page of a Persian woman who chooses to spell it differently, I chose to honor her interpretation. Khelie mamnoon for demonstrating that it would have been better go with my instinct. And thank you very much, Anonymous, for that very kind thought.

    ReplyDelete