Cherry-Almond Biscotti
Submitted by handfull48
Low-fat cherry-almond biscotti with dried cherries, chopped almonds, and almond extract. No butter or oil needed in this crispy, twice-baked Italian cookie for dipping.
YIELD
2 dozenPREP
20 minCOOK
55 minREADY
75 minNo butter. No oil. This biscotti gets its structure entirely from eggs and egg whites, which is how traditional Italian biscotti were always made. The result is a dry, crunchy cookie built for dunking into coffee, tea, or a glass of vin santo.
Dried cherries and chopped almonds stud the dough, and a full 2 teaspoons of almond extract reinforces the nut flavor throughout. The cherries add chewy pockets of tart sweetness that break up the crunch nicely, and they turn slightly jammy during the first bake.
The twice-baked method is what makes biscotti what they are. First bake as logs, cool, slice with a serrated knife, then back in the oven on their sides to dry out and crisp. The end pieces finish faster than the center slices, so pull them early and leave the rest to keep toasting.
Pro Tips
- Use a serrated knife for slicing. A straight-edged knife crushes the still-soft logs. A serrated blade saws through cleanly without crumbling the dough.
- Cool the logs 10 minutes before cutting. Too hot and they crumble. Too cool and they crack. That 10-minute window is when the texture is just right for clean slices.
- Flour your hands for shaping. The dough is sticky by design. Lightly floured hands let you form the logs without the dough sticking to everything.
- Watch the second bake carefully. The difference between perfectly crisp and burnt is narrow at this point. Check every 5 minutes after the first flip.
Variations
- Cranberry-pistachio: Swap dried cherries for cranberries and almonds for shelled pistachios. Replace almond extract with vanilla for a holiday-colored version.
- Chocolate dip: After cooling, dip one end of each biscotto in melted dark chocolate and let it set on parchment. The chocolate adds richness the lean dough doesn’t have.
Ingredients
Directions
Preheat oven to 325 degrees; coat a cookie sheet with nonstick cooking spray.
Beat the eggs, egg whites, sugar and almond extract with an electric mixer until smooth.
Add the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt; beat until well mixed.
Stir in the cherries and almonds. The dough will be sticky, but it it seems too sticky, add a few tablespoons of flour.
Drop the dough by large spoonfuls along the baking sheet to form 2 vertical lines.
The spoonfuls of dough should be close together.
With lightly floured hands, work these 2 lines to make 2 parallel rolls of dough lining each side of the cookie sheet.
Leave ample room for spreading between the rolls and on the sides of the cookie sheet.
Each roll will spread during baking so that it is about 5 inches wide.
Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, or until lightly browned and slightly firm to the touch.
Take the rolls from the oven and reduce the temperature to 300 degrees.
Cool the baked rolls of dough on the cookie sheets for 10 minutes.
Using a serrated knife, cut each roll into 20 slices.
Turn each slice on its side as it is cut. Bake the biscotti for 10 minutes.
Turn the slices onto their other sides and return to the oven for 10 to 20 minutes longer.
The biscotti on the ends will be done after 20 minutes total.
The rest of the slices may need the full 30 minutes.
Watch carefully to avoid overbrowning. Cool on wire racks.
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