At some point or another in our lives most of us end up in a job we would really rather have nothing to do with. It's not that we're treated badly by our bosses or coworkers, or have to do something horrible like cleaning out portable toilets, but merely the fact that we're obligated to turn up to this specific job day in and day out. About 4 years ago I had a job like this at a call centre, and let's just say that my attendance wasn't perfect... So on those days when I supposedly wasn't feeling well or had a family emergency, I would spend most of my time at the beach and the local coffee house. It was during those lazy spring days that I would get my weekly fix of white chocolate almond biscotti. Perfectly dense and crunchy with chunks of toasty almonds and a drizzle of creamy white chocolate. This recipe is quite a bit lighter than the biscotti that I used to get from the coffee house, and a bit easier on the teeth! It's very versatile so you can add nuts, dried fruit, chocolate chips, citrus zest, coffee, almost anything you can think of. It's all about experimenting and finding something you like. Finish these off with a dip in some melted chocolate and relax with a coffee and cookie on a sunny afternoon.
Biscotti
1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup sugar
3 large eggs
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
3 3/4 cup all purpose flour
1 cup chocolate chips/chopped nuts/dried fruit
2 tbs juice/coffee/liqueur/milk
Preheat the oven to 300 F. Cream the butter and sugar in a large bowl, add eggs one at a time and mix to combine thoroughly, scraping down the sides of the bowl. Sift baking powder, salt and flour together. Add to butter mixture, and gently stir to bring everything together to a dough. Add chocolate/chopped nuts/dried fruit, followed by the liquid. Knead lightly to bring everything together and to make sure the additions are distributed evenly. Shape the dough into a log. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper, and shape the log to almost the same length as the baking sheet. Press the dough down until it's approximately 2 cm thick, making sure it is straight and even in thickness and width. Brush with egg wash if you want a shiny finish. Bake, rotating the pan after 15 minutes, until fully cooked but still soft to the touch. Remove from oven and let cool 5 minutes. Using a sharp serrated knife, slice biscotti 1-2cm thick. Separate cookies on the baking sheet to ensure air flow all around each one. Return to the oven to finish drying out the cookies, about 15 mins. Let cool fully before putting in an airtight container to keep them from getting soft. Dip in melted chocolate if you like once the biscotti are cool and let set on parchment paper. Enjoy!
**Sorry it's been a while since my last post! My computer got a virus a few weeks ago and it's taken me a little while to get it cleaned out and all of my files back. Thanks for your patience!
