Black Pepper Shortbread
3/4 cup unsalted butter room temperature
1/4 cup granulated white sugar
3/4 cup all purpose flour
3/4 cup rice flour
2 teaspoons salt
2 teaspoons coarse, fleshly ground black pepper
Cream butter and sugar until smooth, sift and mix both flours, add slowly to butter and sugar, fold in salt and pepper. Roll to desired thickness, between ½ and ¾ of an inch.
Cut into rounds of desired size. Bake until golden and cooked through approximately 20-30 minutes at 350º
Fennel Marmalade
Three bulbs of fennel (branches removed for another purpose) diced into ¼ inch cubes
1/8 of a pound of unsalted butter
¼ cup honey
¼ cup granulated white sugar
1 teaspoon fennel seeds
2 teaspoons kosher salt
Mix honey, sugar, butter and fennel seeds in a large shallow pan, cook on medium heat until well mixed and beginning to turn golden, add fennel and salt and reduce heat to low.
Cook until translucent and tender, add a bit of water if it gets any darker than light golden. Remove to cool on a sheet tray with parchment paper.