Cranberry-Almond Biscotti
Making your own biscotti, at home, is easier than you migh think. With this recipe, the dough has a subtle balance of citrus, a little bit of chew from dried cranberries and the crunch of almonds. If you want to go the extra mile, dip them in a little white or dark chocolate. I especially love these with a cup of my morning coffee-- but they also make great holiday gifts.
Servings 12
Calories 430kcal
Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 3/4 cup sugar
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter 1-stick , , room temperature
- 1 teaspoon lemon zest grated
- 1 teaspoon orange zest grated
- 1/4 teaspoons salt
- 2 large eggs
- 3/4 cup sliced almonds or pistachios
- 1/2 cup dried cranberries
- 12 ounces dark chocolate for dipping
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F.
- Line a heavy large baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Whisk flour, salt and baking powder in a medium bowl to blend. Using stand mixer (or a hand-held mixer), beat the sugar and butter until fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add the eggs and continue to mix, then add the lemon and orange zest until blended.
- Add about 1/3 of the flour, on low speed.
- Add the nuts and cranberries and then add more of the dry ingredients, a little at a time.
- Form the dough into a long, wide log on the prepared baking sheet.
- Bake until light golden, about 40 minutes.
- Place the log on the cutting board. Using a sharp, serrated knife, cut the log on a diagonal into 3/4-inch thick slices.
- Note: I found that cutting straight down, rather than sawing, made for less crumbs or broken slices.
- Arrange the biscotti, cut side down, on the baking sheet.
- Bake the biscotti until they are pale golden, about 15 minutes. Transfer the biscotti to a rack and cool completely.
- Note: I baked mine at 325°F and turned them over after 7 minutes. My biscotti turned the way I prefer them to be—lightly golden, lightly crispy on the outside, and soft on the inside. If you prefer yours to be hard and crunchy, bake at 350°F.
Dip in chocolate:
- Stir the chocolate in a bowl, set over a saucepan of simmering water, until the chocolate melts.
- To make tempered chocolate, chop about 2 cups of the chocolate into pieces (or chocolate chip Morsels) and place 3/4 of it in a small glass bowl in a microwave for 20 seconds exactly.
- Stir the chocolate and continue to microwave for 20 seconds at a time, stirring in between, until the chocolate is smooth and shiny.
- Add the remaining 1/4 of the chocolate and stir until smooth. The chocolate should register 87 to 89°F on a candy thermometer. (per Ina Garten).
- Submerge half of the biscotti (rather than one end, so you can get chocolate in each bite) into the melted chocolate. Gently shake off the excess chocolate.
- Place the biscotti on the baking sheet (chocolate side up) for the chocolate to set.
- Refrigerate until the chocolate is firm, about 35 minutes. Or, in our case, eat them immediately and enjoy!
Notes
Note: Because I prefer a chewier texture on the inside, I under-baked mine by about 5 minutes. Cool only until you can touch it.
Note: Instead of zest, I used 1/2 teaspoon of Flor Di Sicilia, a few drops of pure orange oil (not extract) and lemon oil, purchased online at King Arthur Flour. Loved it!
Chocolate dip: This is definitely optional. Sometimes, I don't dip these in chocolate and love them just the same. Or, you could melt white chocolate for a different twist.