Biscotti
Instructions:
- The twice-baked technique makes these sliced cookies
crunchy and ideal for serving with coffee.
- 4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, plus more for greasing the pans
- 3/4 cup sugar
- 3 eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla or almond extract
- 2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for the baking sheets
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- Pinch salt
- 1 or 2 tablespoons milk if necessary
- Heat the oven to 375 F. Use an electric mixer to cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy; add the eggs, one at a time, and beat until well blended, then add the extract.
- Combine the flour, baking powder, and salt in a bowl. Add the dry ingredients to the dough a little at a time, beating until just incorporated and adding a little milk if needed to bring the dough together.
- Butter 2 baking sheets and dust them with flour; invert the sheets and tap them to remove excess flour.
- Divide the dough in half and shape each half into a 2-inch-wide log. Put each log on a baking sheet.
- Bake until the loaves are golden and beginning to crack on top, about 30 minutes; cool the logs on the sheets for a few minutes. Lower the oven temperature to 250F.
- When the loaves are cool enough to handle, use a serrated knife to cut each on a diagonal into 1/2-inchthick slices. Put the slices on the sheets, return them to the oven, and leave them there, turning once, until they dry out, 15 to 20 minutes. Cool on wire racks. These will keep in an airtight container for several days.
- Chocolate-Hazelnut Biscotti.
- Put chocolate in the dough as explained here or just dip the baked biscotti in melted chocolate as directed in the following list—or both: Melt 1 ounce each semisweet and unsweetened chocolate and add to the butter mixture in Step 1, before adding the eggs. Add 1 cup blanched and lightly toasted hazelnuts at the end of Step 2