Biscotti With Caramelized Hazelnuts Food

HAZELNUT BISCOTTI

Steps:

• Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 350°F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
• Toast hazelnuts in a shallow baking pan until lightly colored and skins are blistered, 10 to 15 minutes. (Leave oven on.) Wrap nuts in a kitchen towel and let steam 1 minute, then rub off any loose skins in towel while nuts are still warm (don't worry about skins that don't come off). Cool nuts completely, then very coarsely chop.
• Pulse together sugar and 1/2 cup chopped hazelnuts in a food processor until finely ground. Transfer to bowl of mixer along with flour and beat at medium speed until combined well. Add eggs and vanilla and beat just until a dough forms. Reduce speed to low, then add remaining chopped hazelnuts and mix until incorporated. Turn off mixer and knead in any loose hazelnuts with your hands.
• Halve dough and, with dampened hands, form each half into a roughly 10- by 2- by 1-inch log on lined baking sheet, arranging logs 3 inches apart.
• Bake until golden and set but still soft to the touch, 25 to 30 minutes. (Leave oven on.) Cool logs on baking sheet on a rack 10 minutes.
• Transfer logs to a cutting board, discarding parchment, and cut logs with a serrated knife on a slight diagonal into 1/2-inch-thick slices.
• Arrange slices, cut sides down, in 1 layer on unlined baking sheet. Bake slices, turning over once, until golden and crisp, 20 to 25 minutes more. Cool biscotti completely on sheet on rack, about 30 minutes.

TOASTED HAZELNUT-ALMOND BISCOTTI

Steps:

• Heat oven to 375 degrees F. Grease a large sheet pan. Sift the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and sugar together. Transfer 1/2 cup of the mixture to a food processor. Add the toasted almonds and grind until fine and powdery, about 45 seconds. Add to the dry ingredients. Add the chopped chocolate and whole hazelnuts and mix.
• Whisk the eggs, extracts, and almond liqueur together. Add to the dry ingredients and mix. The dough may seem dry, but it will come together as you work it. If the dough doesn't come together, add water. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and divide into 2 equal pieces. Wet your hands and roll each piece of dough into a flattened log about 10 inches long, 3 inches wide, and 1-inch high.
• Transfer the logs to the pan, leaving at least 3 inches between the logs (they will spread during baking). Bake until golden brown, 25 to 30 minutes, rotating the pan after 15 minutes to ensure even baking.
• Let cool 30 minutes.
• Reduce the oven temperature to 300 degrees. Carefully transfer the logs to a cutting board. Wipe off the sheet pan and grease it again.
• Using a serrated knife, cut the logs on the diagonal into 1/2-inch-thick slices, discarding the ends. Arrange the slices cut side up on the sheet pan. Bake until toasted, 20 to 25 minutes. Turn the oven off, prop the oven door open, and let cool completely in the oven to set the chocolate. Store in an airtight container.

HAZELNUT BISCOTTI

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325, and grease a large parchment-lined baking sheet.
• Sift flour, baking powder, espresso powder and salt into a medium bowl. Add toasted hazelnuts, which I like to break into smaller pieces.
• In another bowl, combine orange zest, sugar, oil, eggs and vanilla extract. Whisk until smooth.
• Add egg mixture to flour mixture. Stir with wooden spoon and blend well.
• Divide dough in half and shape each into a cylinder (roughly 12 x 2-inches). Arrange cylinders on the baking sheet, leaving at least 3-inches between them.
• Bake for 30 to 35 minutes or until golden and firm. Remove from oven and let stand for 15 minutes before cutting.
• Transfer cylinders to a cutting board and carefully slice crosswise on the diagonal, with a serrated knife, into ½-inch slices. Put slices back onto the baking sheet, laying them flat and not overlapping.
• Bake a second time for 20 minutes, turning them over after 10 minutes.

HAZELNUT BISCOTTI

Steps:

• Heat oven to 350°F. Spread hazelnuts in ungreased shallow pan. Bake uncovered about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until golden brown; cool.
• In large bowl, beat sugar, butter, almond extract, vanilla and eggs with electric mixer on medium speed, or mix with spoon. Stir in flour, baking powder and baking soda. Stir in hazelnuts. Place dough on lightly floured surface. Gently knead 2 to 3 minutes or until dough holds together and hazelnuts are evenly distributed.
• Divide dough in half. On large ungreased cookie sheet, shape each half into 10x3-inch rectangle, rounding edges slightly.
• Bake about 25 minutes or until center is firm to the touch. Cool on cookie sheet 15 minutes; move to cutting board. Using sharp knife, cut each rectangle crosswise into 1/2-inch slices.
• Place 20 slices, cut sides down, on ungreased cookie sheet. Bake about 15 minutes or until crisp and light brown. Immediately remove from cookie sheet to cooling rack; cool. Cool cookie sheet 5 minutes; repeat with remaining slices.

HAZELNUT-CINNAMON BISCOTTI

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°F. Spray large baking sheet with vegetable oil spray. Mix flour, baking powder, salt and cinnamon in medium bowl; set aside. Coarsely chop hazelnuts in processor. Transfer to small bowl. Combine sugar and butter in processor; blend until fluffy. Add orange peel and vanilla extract and blend well. Add eggs 1 at a time, blending just until incorporated after each addition. Add flour mixture; mix using on/off turns until just blended. Mix in hazelnuts using on/off turns until just blended.
• Turn dough out onto floured work surface. Divide dough in half. Roll each half into 9-inch-long, 2-inch-wide log. Space logs 3 inches apart on prepared baking sheet. Flatten each to 12-inch-long, 2 1/2-inch-wide log. Bake until very light golden and firm to touch, about 25 minutes. Cool on baking sheet 5 minutes. Maintain oven temperature.
• Using metal spatula, transfer logs to work surface. Using serrated knife, cut logs diagonally into 3/4-inch-wide slices. Place slices, cut side down, on large baking sheet. Bake 15 minutes. Turn biscotti over; bake until light golden and firm, about 15 minutes longer. Transfer biscotti to racks and cool. (Can be made 3 days ahead. Store airtight at room temperature.)

HAZELNUT BISCOTTI

Steps:

• In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well with each addition. Stir in the vanilla, then add 2 1/2 cups of the flour mixed with baking powder.
• Cut the nuts in half and add them to the dough. The mixture should be thick enough to shape by hand. If not, add the remaining flour little by little until the mixture reaches the right consistency. Wrap the dough in plastic and refrigerate for at least 2 hours.
• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
• Shape the dough into about 6 small loaves that are 2 inches wide, 6 inches long and 1 inch high. Lay them about 2 inches apart on a lightly greased cookie sheet.
• Bake in the oven for 10 to 15 minutes, until light gold in color.
• While they are hot, place the loaves on a cutting board and cut them on the diagonal into 1/2-inch slices. Place the cookies on the cookie sheet, making sure they do not touch. Bake again for about 10 minutes, until they are golden brown. Watch closely and do not overbake.

HAZELNUT BISCOTTI

Steps:

• Variations-------------.
• GINGER: halve the amount of the nuts and add 2 teaspoons ground ginger, 1/3 cup minced candied ginger and 1 1/2 tablespoons grated fresh ginger.
• Omit the hazelnut liquer and add 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract.
• ORANGE:Add 3 tablespoons grated orange zest and use orange liquer instead of hazelnut.
• CHOCOLATE: Increase the amount of cocoa to 1/2 cup, increase the liquer to 1/4 cup.
• Decrease nuts by 1/3 and add 1 cup white chocolate chopped, 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate, chopped and 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract.
• LEMON-PINE NUT: Omit the nuts, cocoa and liquer.
• Use lightly toasted pine nuts and add 1 1/2 tablespoons each of grated lemon rind and lemon juice.
• COFFEE: Using the hazelnut or almond recipe, add 3 tablespoons instant coffee granules.
• Also add 2 teaspoons ground cardamon or cinnamon.
• Halve the amount of the nuts and add 1 cup chopped dried apricots and 1 teaspoon vanilla extract.
• Preheat the oven to 350'F (180'C or Gas mark 4).
• Place half of the hazelnuts and ALL of the sugar in a blender (or food processor) and process until the nuts are finely chopped.
• Place in a bowl.
• Coarsley chop the rest of the nuts and add to bowl along with the dry ingredients.
• In another bowl, blend the eggs, liquer and butter.
• Stir into the dry ingredients and knead gently with your hands to form a dough.
• Divide the dough in half and on lightly greased baking trays, form the dough into 2- 14 inch rolls- 3" wide and 1" thick.
• Bake at 350'F for 40 minutes.
• Remove from oven.
• Allow to cool for 10 minutes.
• Cut with a serrated knife into 1/2" slices.
• Return the slices to the baking trays.
• Place them UPRIGHT and SPACED WELL APART.
• Lower the oven to 300'F and bake for another 20 minutes until crisp and dry- but NOT brown.
• Cool and store in an airtight container at room temperature.