My Three Favorite Biscotti

I'm not even remotely Italian, but I've made these for Christmas for so many years, I don't even remember a winter without them now. My family might possibly disown me if I quit making them. These are ideal make-ahead cookes since they really never get stale. I've had them last for 6 weeks without a problem more serious than the chocolate bottoms starting to bloom. They start out dry and crunchy, so the only way to ruin them is to expose them to a moist environment. With the exception of dunking them in coffee, hot chocolate, milk... I like these recipes in particular because they don't contain butter (if I want a butter-based cookie, I'll go get something rich and soft and fattening, thank you very much). I think these are even crunchier than a butter-based biscotti, will not go rancid as fast, and have the added benefit of being a little lower fat and sugar offerings in a very fat and sugar-laden time of year.

People seem to think these are so much work, but they're really not. Yes, the baking times are long, but they're not much more hassle than plenty of other cookies. And the prices these things sell for in stores and coffee shops...? I could probably quit my job if I could get that kind of money for these.

Key pointers: make sure the logs are firm enough after the first baking to slice properly, yet not too firm. And not so soft that the embedded nuts squish downward. A good quality, sharp serrated bread knife is the tool of choice.

Biscotti L'Orange

Adapted from 'Cooking Light' magazine (June 1995)

1 cup sugar
1 tsp grated orange rind (or more)
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp orange extract
3 eggs
3 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cups chopped walnuts
3/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
vegetable cooking spray

Combine first 5 ingredients in a large bowl; beat at medium speed of a mixer until well blended. Combine flour, walnuts, baking soda and salt. Gradually add to sugar mixture, beating until well blended.

Turn dough out onto lightly floured surface, and knead lightly 7 times. Shape dough into 16-inch long roll and place on baking sheet coated with cooking spray. Flatten roll to 1-inch thickness.

Bake at 350 for 30 minutes. Remove roll from baking sheet; let cool 10 minutes on a wire rack.

Cut roll diagonally into 27 1/2-inch slices and place, cut sides down on baking sheet. Reduce oven temperature to 325 and bake 10 minutes. Turn cookies over and bake an additional 10 minutes (the cookies will be slightly soft in the center but will harden as they cool). Remove form baking sheet and let cool completely on a wire rack. Yield: 27 cookies (who's counting? I probably get more if the logs are long and narrow)

Notes: I don't even pull out the mixer for any of my biscotti: I use a whisk to mix the dry and wet groups of ingredients. And parchment paper makes all this so much easier. These are just as good without the walnuts---I don't think I've ever made them with the walnuts, actually. I nearly always add a handful or two of dried cranberries. I've made lemon biscotti by substituting lemon extract and lemon zest. You can save 10 minutes if you stand them upright on the pan for the second baking. These are really good with the bottoms dunked in semisweet or bittersweet chocolate.




Chocolate Walnut Biscotti

Adapted from Williams-Sonoma 'Gifts From The Kitchen' cookbook

4 oz semisweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
1 cup granulated sugar
1 3/ 4 cups all-purpose flour
1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
4 eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 1/2 cups coarsely chopped toasted walnuts

Preheat oven to 300. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.

In a food processor fitted with a metal blade, combine the chocolate and sugar and grind until the chocolate is very fine. Set aside. In a bowl, sift together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt. Set aside.

In the bowl of a heavy-duty mixer, combine the eggs and vanilla. Beat at medium speed to blend. Reduce speed to low; add the chocolate and flour mixtures and mix until a stiff dough forms, adding walnuts when about half mixed. Transfer dough to a floured surface and gather it together. Divide in half. Form each half into a log 12 inches long.

Carefully transfer the logs to the prepared baking sheet, spacing them evenly. Pat to even up the shapes. Bake until almost firm to the touch, about 50 minutes. Let cool for 10 minutes. Leave oven set at 300.

Using a spatula, transfer the logs to a work surface. Using a serrated knife, cut on the diagonal into slices 1/2 to 3/4 inch thick. Return the slices to the baking sheet. Stand upright and bake for 25 minutes.

Transfer cookies to wire racks to cool. Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to a month.

Makes about 2 1/2 dozen (again, I never count)



And these, which take a bit more finesse but are so worth the final marbled/swirled look:

Mocha Almond Biscotti

Adapted from Eating Well November/December 1992

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup whole unblanched almonds
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 2 large eggs
• 2 large egg whites
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder
• 2 teaspoons instant coffee or espresso powder
• 4 teaspoons water
• 1 ounce unsweetened chocolate, melted
• 1/2 teaspoon almond extract

Preparation:

1. Preheat oven to 325°F. Lightly oil a baking sheet or coat it with nonstick cooking spray (or use parchment paper).

2. Spread almonds on a second baking sheet and bake for 12 to 14 minutes, or until lightly toasted.

3. Stir together flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a large bowl. Whisk together eggs, egg whites and vanilla in a small bowl and add to the dry ingredients; mix just until smooth.

4. Combine cocoa, instant coffee and water in a small bowl. Divide the dough in half. Add the cocoa mixture and melted chocolate to one half. Mix just until incorporated. Stir almond extract and the almonds into the other half.

5. Place half of the almond dough on a well-floured work surface. Pat into a 4-by-8-inch rectangle. Top with half of the chocolate dough.



Roll up into a cylinder, then roll the cylinder back and forth to form a 14-by-1 1/2 inch log. Repeat with the remaining doughs.




Place the logs on a prepared baking sheet. Bake until firm to the touch, 20 to 25 minutes. Transfer the logs to a rack to cool. Reduce the oven temperature to 300°F.

6. Cut the logs diagonally into 1/2-inch-thick slices.



Stand the slices upright on the baking sheet and bake for 40 minutes. Let cool before storing.


Notes:

I often just use 4 whole eggs, but then must add 1/3 to ½ cup additional flour if the dough becomes too sticky. Make sure work surface is generously floured before laying out dough. I sometimes dust my fingertips with cocoa when spreading out the mocha dough. I also dunk the bottoms of these in bittersweet or semisweet chocolate.