We were having some family over last weekend and decided to make pizza, so we wanted a light but simple dessert to go with it. Biscotti to the rescue! These Italian cookies are super easy to make and are incredibly easy to customize. We decided to adapt a recipe from Bon Appetit to create these delicious chocolate, cherry and almond biscotti. The were the perfect accompaniment to our coffee, post-pizza indulgence.
Biscotti may seem complicated, but the recipe is actually super straightforward. You combine the wet ingredients (sugar, egg, butter, extracts), then add the dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, salt) and fold in your desired flavor mix-ins. Of note – I highly recommend toasting the nuts before adding them in, but be sure to let them cool, otherwise you’ll end up with a chocolatey mess in your mixing bowl.
Once the dough is made, you form it into a ball and let it cool to harden a bit before baking. The key part of making biscotti is that it is baked twice, usually at different temperatures. In fact, the word “biscotti” actually stems from a Latin word meaning “twice cooked”. Once the dough has chilled, you simply form the dough into two rectangular logs and bake until lightly golden. Then for the second bake, you will slice the logs into the actual cookie shape. This is easiest if using a serrated knife. We love our Shun offset bread knife, and it worked perfect for this job. Bake for the second time, and let cool and your coffee is reading for some dunking action.
We are definitely planning on making several more batches of these chocolate, cherry and almond biscotti for the holiday season. They are always a hit with the Migoni family. They also make great gifts, as they stay crisp for about a week in an airtight container. Try your favorite mix-ins and see how your family likes them!
Happy (almost) Holidays!
Ingredients
Method
- Preheat the oven to 325F.
- Spread out the slivered almonds on a baking sheet and bake for approximately 5 minutes until lightly toasted with a golden brown color. Keep a close eye, as the almonds can quickly turn from golden brown to burnt.
- Remove from heat and let cool.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour (2 cups), baking powder, and salt. Whisk together to combine and set aside.
- In the bowl of an electric stand mixer, combine the room temperature butter with the sugar. If your butter is still cold, you can heat in the microwave for 10-15 seconds to soften.
- Mix until butter and sugar are well combined and no longer appearing clumpy.
- Next, beat in eggs, one at a time, until well combined. Then add the vanilla and almond extracts.
- Next, add in your flour mixture in 2 additions and beat until well blended. If the dough still appears very sticky, you can add in the additional 2 tablespoons of flour at this time.
- Fold in the chocolate chips, chopped cherries, and almonds. Make sure the almonds have cooled, otherwise they will melt the chocolate chips.
- Gather the dough together and form a ball. Divide in half. Wrap in plastic wrap and freeze for about 20 minutes to help firm up the dough.
- Preheat the oven to 350F.
- Remove the dough from the freezer and form them into 2 rectangular logs - about 12 in long, 1 1/2 inches thick, and 2 1/2 inches wide.
- Place onto Silpat baking mat or parchment paper on a baking sheet at least 2 inches apart. Bake for about 30 minutes until the logs appear slightly golden.
- Remove from oven and let cool for about 15-20 minutes.
- Using a serrated knife, slice the logs into 1/2 inch slices.
- Reduce oven temperature to 300F.
- Place the sliced biscotti back onto the baking sheet, standing up. Baking for about 30-35 minutes until dried and golden.
- Remove from oven and let cool. Store in airtight container.