Mandel Rolls

Mandel rolls are the Jewish answer to Italian biscotti: twice-baked, crunchy, and loaded with chopped nuts. This Passover-friendly version uses cake meal, matzo meal, and potato starch instead of regular flour, so they’re perfect for the holiday table but honestly good enough to make year-round.

The dough gets shaped into logs, baked until lightly browned, then sliced and returned to the cooling oven to dry out and crisp up. That second bake in residual heat is gentler than blasting them at full temperature, giving you an even crunch without burning the edges. Cinnamon perfumes each bite, and the finely chopped nuts add texture throughout.

Pro Tips

• Refrigerate the dough before shaping. It’s oily and soft, and cold dough is much easier to form into neat logs.
• Slice the rolls while they’re still slightly warm. Fully cooled rolls tend to crumble and crack when you cut them.
• Turn the oven off before returning the slices. The residual heat dries them slowly for even crispness without scorching.
• Press the dough into logs no wider than 3 inches. Thicker rolls won’t bake through in the center before the outside overbrowns.

Variations

• Swap cinnamon for a tablespoon of grated lemon or orange zest for a citrusy, brighter flavor.
• Use almonds or walnuts as the nut, or go with a mix of both.
• Dip cooled mandel rolls halfway into melted chocolate for a more indulgent treat (after Passover if keeping strict kosher).