Easy Cinnamon Almond Biscotti
(makes about 30)
These are EXCELLENT! However they are not the extra tough-crisp biscotti, but instead have a very nice firm cookie texture.
NOTE: If you follow the recipe below yours will be a pretty medium-golden color. I added an extra teaspoon of Vietnamese Cinnamon to those in the picture at the request of the cinnamon-lover I was making them for. (Personally I prefer the recipe just as written!)
I've made these many times to rave reviews, they make a very nice gift. I always include them in my Christmas Cookie Baskets.
This time I dipped the bottoms in melted chocolate; some in White Chocolate, and some in Semi-Sweet Chocolate, and allowed the chocolate to cool and harden (chocolate-side-down) on silicone baking liners. But they are absolutely delicious plain without the chocolate, too.
If you make them I hope you enjoy them as much as my family and friends do.
Ingredients:
¾ cup butter, softened
1 cup granulated sugar
2 eggs
1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon cinnamon
¾ teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoons salt
1 cup sliced or slivered almonds
Sanding sugar or regular sugar and more cinnamon for rolling logs
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
Line a sheetpan with parchment paper.
In a medium bowl, cream together butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs and vanilla. Sift together the flour, cinnamon, baking powder, and salt; mix into the egg mixture. Stir in the almonds. Sprinkle the sugar/cinnamon mixture evenly over the parchment lined baking pan.
Divide the dough equally into two (while it's still in the bowl) and place on the parchment paper forming and rolling them into logs (about 12 inches long) making sure they're covered with the sugar/cinnamon mixture. Don't worry about removing any excess sugar, from the baking pan, it's fine to leave it on the parchment.
Leave them in a roll shape and DON'T flatten. Place logs on baking sheet, and bake in a preheated oven, for 30 minutes, or until the edges are golden.
Remove from oven to cool just 5 minutes (no longer) on the pan.
REDUCE oven temperature to 250 degrees. Use a chefs knife to carefully slice, pushing straight down, (rather than sawing) the loaves, diagonally, into ½ inch thick slices.
Return the slices to the baking sheet on their sides. Bake for 10 minutes, at 250 degrees, turn pieces over and cook 10 more minutes on the other side.
Turn them upright and TURN OFF the oven and just leave them sit in the oven for an additional 4 to 5 HOURS or longer. Cool completely, and store in an airtight container at room temperature. They stay fresh for a month if stored properly. such as an airtight tin, lined with waxed paper. These freeze exceptionally well.
Adapted from Allrecipes
