Ever since Jay moved to Chicago, we have enjoyed spending our abbreviated Sunday mornings at Starbucks splitting a french press. It was these coffee dates that inspired us to make biscotti.
I have never baked biscotti before, but I know they are similar to mandel bread, which is a traditional Jewish cookie that is twice baked. I found a recipe from the King Arthur Flour website. I love to use their white whole wheat flour and I thought it would work well in this recipe.
Ingredients
6 tablespoons butter
2/3 cup sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
2 large eggs
2 cups white whole wheat flour
Optional: chocolate chips, cinnamon, cinnamon chips etc.
Notes
For the most part this dough is prepared just like any other cookie recipe.
The differences come in during the baking process. First, instead of dropping the cookie dough onto the cookie sheet, you form the dough into logs about 2 ½” wide x ¾” thick and bake for 25 minutes at 350°F.
Then, remove the dough from the oven and allow it to cool about 15-20 minutes. Reduce the heat to 325°F.
Spritz the dough with water and let it sit for about 5 minutes. Next, using a serrated knife cut the dough into ½”‘ to ¾” thick slices.
Return the biscotti to the oven and bake for another 25 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to cool.
Results
These biscotti are awesome! The recipe was simple and using water to prevent the once baked cookie dough from cracking worked really well. I am not sure what made these “American-style,” but there is also a recipe for “Italian” biscotti that would be fun to make and compare.
Jay and I split the dough and made our own variations: Jay added chocolate chips and I added 1/2 TBSP cinnamon and cinnamon chips. I like them both, but the true test came when we had them with our Starbucks coffee the next day. Check out Jay’s post to see what we thought.
Two People One Tiny Kitchen 