Grape Nuts Biscotti Food

BISCOTTI WITH CARAMELIZED HAZELNUTS

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Arrange the hazelnuts in a single layer on a silicon pad lined baking sheet. Put the tray in the center of the oven and cook until a little past light brown, 8 to 10 minutes. Set aside to cool.
• Heat a large, stainless steel pan on medium heat. Make sure the pan is dry and clean to avoid any impurities or water affecting the caramel you are about to make. Add the sugar. Shake the pan slightly to distribute the sugar in an even layer on the bottom of the pan. Lower the heat and keep your eye on the sugar as it melts and begins to turn brown. Lift the pan and swirl the sugar around from time to time as it melts. Do not stir with any utensils. Any impurities on the utensil could also disturb the sugar as it melts.*
• Prepare a baking sheet lined a silicon mat or parchment paper. Spray a layer of nonstick spray on the parchment, if using. Set aside. When the hazelnuts cool slightly and the caramel is a light brown, use a clean spoon to stir the hazelnuts into the caramel. Spray the spoon with nonstick spray so that the sugar doesn't stick to the end of the spoon as you work. Stir the nuts, coating them with the sugar. Use the spoon to scoop out the hazelnuts and spread them on to the lined baking sheet. Spread them as best you can without creating big clumps. Sprinkle with a touch of salt. Set aside to cool.
• In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs, almond extract and the lemon zest. Set aside.
• In another bowl, sift together the 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt, flour, baking powder, baking soda and cinnamon. Set aside.
• Stir the flour into the egg mixture. Use your hands to finish combining the wet and dry ingredients. Break apart and roughly chop the hazelnuts and gently work half of them into the dough. Reserve remaining half for snacking.
• Prepare a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and lightly spray with cooking spray.
• Divide the dough into 2 equal parts. Using your hands, turn the dough out onto a lightly floured flat surface. Form each half of the dough into a loaf-like shape about 2 inches wide and about 12 inches long. They should look like 2 loaves of bread. Carefully arrange the 2 loaves, side by side, on the baking sheet. For optimum baking, leave as much space as possible between the loaves.
• Put the baking sheet in the center of the oven and bake, undisturbed, for 25 to 30 minutes. The dough should be light brown and may rise a little as it cooks. Remove from the oven and put onto a flat surface to cool. Turn the oven off.
• Once cooled, using a serrated knife, gently saw the loaf into 1/2-inch thick slices, cut on an angle. Arrange the slices on the baking sheet, cut sides up, in a single layer. There should be a little space between each slice. It will almost feel like the loaves are 2 puzzles that you take apart by cutting and then put back together on the baking sheet.
• Return the baking sheet to the oven. Allow them to sit in the oven for 10 minutes. This will cause the biscotti to firm up and toast, but only ever so slightly. Remove from the oven and cool. Serve with lemon curd.
• In a large, stainless steel pot, whisk together the eggs, granulated sugar, lemon zest and orange zest. Continue to whisk until the mixture lightens in color, 2 to 3 minutes. Whisk in the lemon juice and orange juice.
• Put the pot over low heat and cook and stir constantly, until the mixture starts to thicken. Take care to scrape the sides of the pot so the curd doesnt form a crust on the edges or scorch as it cooks. After a few minutes, start gradually whisking in the slices of butter. When all of the butter is integrated, remove the pot from the heat. Transfer the curd to another bowl to cool, then cover it tightly with a layer of plastic wrap. The plastic should be placed directly on top of the curd to prevent a skin from forming as it cools.
• Serve in a bowl alongside the biscotti for dunking or spreading on the biscotti like jam.
• Yield: about 1 to 1 1/2 cups curd
• Prep Time: 10 minutes
• Cook Time: 10 minutes
• Inactive Prep Time: 30 minutes
• Ease of preparation: easy

GRAPE NUTS BISCOTTI WITH CINNAMON FROSTING

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit and line one to two cookie sheets with Gefen Parchment Paper.
• Beat eggs and sugar. Add oil, vanilla and almond extract.
• Add flour, baking powder, and salt. Mix until just incorporated.
• Mix in cereal and almonds. Do not overmix.
• Allow dough to rest for 15 minutes.
• Form dough into a log the length of your baking sheet (for smaller biscotti, divide dough in half and form a log on two baking sheets).
• Bake for 25 minutes. Remove from oven and slice into half-inch slices while still hot.
• Lower oven temp to 325 degrees Fahrenheit.
• Lay biscotti slices on their side and return to oven for another seven minutes
• In a bowl, combine icing sugar, milk, cinnamon, and vanilla and stir until there are no lumps.
• While biscotti are still warm, drizzle the frosting over with a spoon or fork.

CHOCOLATE NUT BISCOTTI

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (180 degrees C). Grease and lightly flour cookie sheet.
• In a small bowl, mix flour, baking powder and salt.
• Beat butter and sugar in large bowl until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs and vanilla. Gradually add flour mixture, beating well after each addition. Stir in chocolate and nuts.
• Divide dough into two equal parts. On floured surface, shape dough into two logs, 14 inches long, 1-1/2 inches wide and 1 inch thick. Place two inches apart on prepared cookie sheet.
• Bake for 25 minutes or until lightly browned. Remove to a cutting board. Let cool 5 minutes. Cut into 3/4 inch thick diagonal slices and return to cookie sheet, standing upright.
• Bake 10 minutes more or until slightly dry. Cool completely on wire racks.

GRAPE-NUTS BISCOTTI

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
• Beat together eggs and sugar.
• Add rest of ingredients.
• Mix well.
• Divide dough into 3 loaves.
• Oil cookie sheet.
• Bake 15 minutes.
• Cool.
• Slice (approx. 12 per loaf) and bake 15-20 minutes or until lightly brown.

HOMEMADE GRAPE-NUTS CEREAL

Steps:

• Put dry ingredients in a bowl, except soda which should be added to milk just before adding milk to dry ingredients.
• Last add oleo and flavorings; mix well.
• Dough should be fairly thick.
• If too thick, add milk, if too thin, add flour.
• Put in pans and spread even.
• Bake in 350°F oven till baked.
• Take out and let cool.
• Rub over wire netting, or over grater.
• Dry in oven till crisp.

BISCOTTI

Steps:

• Prepare the biscotti. Preheat the oven to 300°F (150°C). Spread the almonds and pistachios evenly on a baking sheet and place in the oven. Toast for about 30 minutes, until they are golden brown. You will be able to smell the nuts when they are ready. A good test is to break a nut in half and check to see if it is light brown on the inside. Toasting the nuts brings out their natural flavor. Remove them from the oven and allow to cool completely on the baking sheet on a wire rack.
• Place the remaining ingredients in a large mixing bowl and beat with an electric mixer on medium speed until well combined, about 5 minutes; the mixture will hold together in a soft dough. Add the cooled toasted nuts and mix until they are evenly incorporated, about 1 minute. If you are using a hand-held mixer, you may want to knead in the nuts by hand to avoid burning out the motor of the mixer.
• Remove the dough from the mixing bowl and place on a very lightly floured work surface. If the dough is sticky and hard to work with, it is too soft. To fix this, flatten it into a disk, cover with plastic wrap, and place it in the refrigerator for a minimum of 1 hour. (When the butter in the dough gets cold, the dough will stiffen.) Remove from the refrigerator and proceed.)
• Preheat the oven to 350��F (175°C). Divide the dough into three equal pieces. Use the palms of your hands to roll each piece on the lightly floured work surface into a rope 1 to 1 1/2 inches in diameter. Each rope should be even and fit on your baking sheet lengthwise. If the dough sticks to your hands or to the work surface as you are rolling it, dust it lightly with flour. Roll firmly to remove any trapped air bubbles. (At this stage, you can wrap the dough well in plastic wrap and freeze for up to two weeks. Bring it back to room temperature before baking.)
• Place two of the biscotti ropes on a parchment paper-covered baking sheet. You will only have room for two because they spread as they bake. With a pastry brush, lightly brush each rope with the egg white; this will add shine to the baked biscotti. Bake until golden brown, about 30 minues. Remove from the oven and let cool slightly on the baking sheet.
• Use a serrated knife to slice the biscotti on a diagonal into 1/2-inch thick cookies. If you do this while the biscotti are still warm, they will not crumble. The biscotti will harden as they cool. If they are still soft when you slice them, place the slices on a baking sheet and bake at 300°F (150°C) for another 10 to 15 minutes. Repeat the baking and cooling procedure with the remaining biscotti rope.
• Store in an airtight container at room temperature for two to three weeks.

RAISIN-AND-NUT-STUDDED BISCOTTI

Steps:

• Soak the raisins in the liquor for 30 minutes. Drain, reserving the liquid. Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease and flour 2 cookie sheets.
• If you are making the biscotti by hand, sift together the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. With your fingers, rub in the butter until the mixture has the texture of coarse cornmeal. Place them in a mixing bowl, making a well in the center. Beat together the egg yolks, reserved liquor and the milk and pour them into the well. Gradually draw the dry ingredients into the egg mixture, turning the bowl and working from the outside toward the center. When the dough is evenly mixed, scrape it onto a lightly floured work surface and flatten it into a rectangle. Scatter half the raisins, pine nuts, almonds, candied orange peel and aniseeds over the dough, and fold the dough over on itself several times to distribute them evenly. Add more flour to the work surface if necessary to keep the dough from sticking, and repeat the process with the remaining raisins, pine nuts, almond, orange peel and aniseeds.
• If you are using an electric mixer, combine the flour, baking powder and salt and set aside. In the mixing bowl, cream the butter and sugar and beat for about 3 minutes, until light and creamy. Add the yolks, one at a time, incorporating each fully before adding another. Stir in the liquor and the milk. Sift the flour mixture over the top and fold in at the lowest speed. Add the remaining ingredients by hand.
• Lightly flour the work surface and your hands and shape the dough into 6 equal 9-by-2-inch logs. If the dough is too soft to roll, cover and refrigerate it for 1 to 2 hours. Transfer the logs to the cookie sheets, setting them at least 2 inches apart. Flatten the tops and brush with the egg wash.
• Bake until pale golden and barely firm, about 20 minutes. Remove the logs from the cookie sheets, let them cool until you can handle them, about 10 minutes, then cut each one on the diagonal at -inch intervals. Set the slices on their edges on the cookie sheets, leaving 1-inch space between them, and bake until golden and firm, about 15 to 18 minutes. Alternatively, you can lay the slices on their sides and turn them after 7 minutes. Cool on a rack.

GRAPE NUT BISCOTTI

Steps:

• Place all dry ingredients into a bowl and blend together. Make a well in the center of the mixture. Mix eggs, oil, almond extract, and orange zest together and add to the dry mixture all at once.
• With hands or slotted spoon, work dry mixture with liquids until a dough has been formed. Turn mixture out on a lightly floured surface and roll into log approx 15 inches long. Place log onto a sill pack baking sheet. Press log into a sheet of dough approximately ¾-inch thick by 6 x 15.
• Bake in a 350 degree oven for 30 to 35 minutes until lightly colored on top. Remove from oven and cool slightly.
• Remove to a cutting board. Using a sharp knife, cut cylinders diagonally into 3/4 inch slices. Carefully place slices back on the baking sheet, cut sides down, and return to the oven for 15 minutes more. Bake until sides are golden and biscotti have dried out a bit. Remove from the oven and cool on wire racks. They should be crunchy.

BISCOTTI: TRADITIONAL AND WHOLE GRAIN KAMUT

Steps:

• Preheat your oven to 300F and line a medium or large baking sheet with parchment paper.
• In one bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt.
• In a second bowl, beat the sugar, eggs, oil and extracts/liquors.
• Using a spatula, mix the dry ingredients into the wet until they are incorporated.
• Add the nuts and dried fruit last.
• Scoop half the batter out of the bowl with your spatula and lay it on your baking sheet, dragging it into a line and smoothing it with wet fingertips. Repeat with the second half of the dough until you have two smooth tubes roughly 2-3 inches wide and 1 inch tall.
• Bake for 35 minutes until the tops are lightly golden.
• Remove from the oven and gently set the biscotti tubes (still on the parchment) on a cooling rack for 10 minutes. Lower the oven temp to 275F while the biscotti cool.
• Transfer the biscotti to a cutting board and cut 1-inch pieces on the diagonal using a sharp knife (I prefer a chef's knife over serrated).
• Lay the cut biscotti on the parchment lined baking sheet, cut side up, and bake at 275F for 10 minutes.
• Remove the sheet from the oven, flip all the biscotti over to their other cut side, and bake for 10 more minutes.
• Let the biscotti cool completely on a rack before dipping them in chocolate. Do not store in plastic or they will soften.
• Optional Chocolate Decoration
• Melt 4 ounces of chopped dark chocolate in mug, using the microwave in 15-30 second increments and stirring in between (1-2 minutes total, depending on your microwave).
• Arrange your cooling rack over the same parchment-lined baking sheet you used to bake the biscotti. (You can also place the biscotti directly on the parchment.)
• Dip the one end of a biscotti in the melted chocolate, and scrape one side gently on the rim of the mug as you pull it out. Place the biscotti scraped-side-down on your cooling rack or parchment for minimal dripping.
• If the chocolate re-hardens as you're dipping the biscotti, pop the mug back in the microwave for 15 seconds and clean up the sides of the mug with a spatula.
• Let the chocolate cool and harden completely before gently popping the biscotti off the rack or parchment.