Biscotti With A Persian Twist Food

EASY BISCOTTI

Steps:

• Heat the oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4, and line a baking tray with baking parchment. Put the flour, sugars, baking powder and a large pinch of salt in a large bowl and stir together.
• In a separate bowl, whisk together the oil, egg, vanilla and 3 tbsp hot water. Gradually mix the wet ingredients into the dry until the mixture comes together into a dough. Gently knead the dough until smooth - it will be quite dry, so add another 1 tbsp water if it's too difficult to knead after a few minutes. Divide the dough into two equal pieces, shaping each into a 25 x 8cm log. Put the logs on the prepared baking tray and bake for 25-30 mins. Remove from the oven and leave to cool on the tray for around 15 mins.
• Using a sharp knife, cut the slightly cooled logs into 1-2cm-thick slices crosswise. Return the biscotti to the lined baking tray and bake for 15-20 mins more (the oven should still be at 180C/160C fan/gas 4), turning the tray around halfway through. Leave to cool slightly on the tray, then transfer the biscotti to a wire rack and leave to cool completely. If you like, dip one end of each biscotti into some melted chocolate, then leave to set on a baking tray lined with baking parchment. Will keep in an airtight container for up to five days.

BISCOTTI

Steps:

• Heat the oven to 325 degrees. Position rack in center of oven. With a small knife, scrape the seeds from the vanilla bean and place in a small bowl. Add the sugar and use your fingers to mix the vanilla evenly into the sugar. Set aside. With an electric mixer, cream the butter until light. Add the vanilla sugar and mix until fluffy. Add the eggs and the vanilla extract and mix until smooth. Stir together the flour, baking powder, salt and almonds and stir into the butter mixture.
• Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Divide the dough into 3 pieces. On a lightly floured surface, shape each piece of dough into a log that is about 1 1/4 inches in diameter. Place the logs on the baking sheet, spacing them as far apart as possible. Bake in the center of the oven until lightly browned, about 30 minutes.
• Place the logs on a cutting board and let them cool slightly. With a serrated knife, cut the logs on the diagonal into 1/2-inch-thick pieces. Place on the baking sheet, cut side down. Bake until lightly browned, about 15 minutes, turning once. Transfer the cookies to a rack to cool. Store in an airtight container.

ESPRESSO & DARK CHOCOLATE BISCOTTI

Steps:

• Heat the oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4, and line a baking tray with baking parchment. Set aside. Put the flour, sugars, baking powder and a good pinch of salt into a large bowl, then stir to combine.
• Whisk the oil, egg, vanilla extract and coffee together in a separate small bowl. Slowly pour the wet ingredients into the dry, mixing until you have a dry dough. Fold in 100g of the chocolate chips. Knead the dough until smooth - it will be quite dry, but if it's too difficult to knead, add another 1 tbsp water. Divide the dough in half, shaping each piece into a 25 x 8cm log, and transfer both to the prepared tray. Bake for 25-30 mins, then leave to cool on the tray for 15 mins.
• Reduce the oven to 160C/140C fan/gas 3. Slice the biscotti logs into 1-2cm-thick slices crosswise using a sharp knife, you should have about 16. Return to the tray and bake for 15-20 mins more, turning the tray around halfway through. Leave to cool slightly on the tray, then transfer to a wire rack and leave to cool completely. Melt the remaining chocolate chips in the microwave in 20-second bursts until smooth, or in a heatproof bowl set over a pan of barely simmering water, then dip one end of the cooled biscotti into the melted chocolate. Transfer to a sheet of baking parchment and leave to set. Will keep in an airtight container for up to five days.

EASY BISCOTTI RECIPE

Steps:

• Prepare a baking sheet lined with parchment paper
• In a small bowl whisk flour and baking powder.
• Place the butter and sugar in a large mixing bowl. Using a hand mixer like this one, beat the butter and sugar at medium-high speed until light and fluffy. Reduce the speed to low and add one egg at a time, beating gently until combined.
• Add the pistachios, cardamom, and vanilla extract. Mix with a spoon until combined.
• Stir in the flour mixture until just combined.
• Dust the lined baking sheet with flour. Spoon the dough on top. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.
• Heat your oven to 350 degrees F, adjusting a rack in the middle.
• Take the dough out of the fridge. Using floured hands, form a log that's about 12 inches long (it doesn't need to be perfect. The dough will spread during baking).
• Bake for 25 minutes, or until the dough is slightly golden, rotating the baking sheet halfway through.
• At this point, the dough should still be quite soft. Remove from the oven and let cool for 10 to 20 minutes. Take a serrated knife and cut the log into 1/2-inch slices. Arrange the biscotti slices flat in one layer on the baking sheet, keep them about 1/2 inch apart.
• Reduce the oven heat to 275 degrees F. Bake for another 30-35 minutes, turning the biscotti cookies over halfway through until crisp. Remove from the heat and transfer to a wire rack to cool.
• Once cooled completely, you can store the biscotti in a loosley covered glass jar or container.

BISCOTTI WITH A PERSIAN TWIST

Steps:

• Preheat your oven to 325* F and lightly oil one large or two smaller cookie sheets.
• In a large bowl, whisk together flours, salt, baking powder, and cardamom powder if using.
• In another bowl, mix together the agave or sugar, applesauce, oil, and extracts. (Use more oil for a softer biscotti, less oil for a crunchier biscotti).
• In thirds, gently add and stir sugar mixture into the flour mixture. Batter will be very thick. Add the nuts and fruits. Finish the mixing with your hands.
• With floured hands, shape the dough into two 3-inch wide "logs" about 3/4 inch thick, with the ends squared off. (Measure if you have to; I did!).
• Bake the logs for about 25 minutes. Remove from the oven, and cool on a wire rack. As they cool, drop the oven temp to 300°F.
• Cool the logs on a rack for 15 minutes. Cut the logs carefully with a sharp knife straight across into 1/2 inch wide slices.
• Place the slices cut side down on the cookie sheets and bake for 5-10 minutes more.
• Turn the slices over and cook 5-10 minutes more, or until golden on bottom. NOTE: The biscotti might look under-cooked. They almost certainly are not. They will harden up as they sit.
• Cool on racks, then store in an airtight container for up to two weeks.

MEMORABLE BISCOTTI

Steps:

• In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in extracts. Combine the flour, baking powder and salt; gradually add to creamed mixture and mix well. Stir in almonds. , Line a baking sheet with foil and grease the foil. Divide dough in half. On the foil, form each portion into an 11x3-in. rectangle. , Bake at 300° for 35 minutes or until lightly browned. Carefully remove to wire racks; cool for 15 minutes. Increase heat to 325°., Transfer rectangles to a cutting board; cut diagonally with a serrated knife into 3/4-in. slices. Place cut side down on ungreased baking sheets. , Bake for 10 minutes. Turn and bake 10 minutes longer or until firm. Remove to wire racks to cool completely. Store in an airtight container.