Cranberry Orange Almond Biscotti

With Chocolate. Can it get any better?

Ellyn asked me to put this recipe up, so here it is. [Keep scrolling and you will find my recipe for mushroom couscous that someone else asked me for, though I can’t remember who it was.]

I was looking for something a little lower in fat than the standard Christmas cookies and came up with these by combining ideas from several different recipes. Most biscotti recipes seem to have some added fat, but these do not, beyond that in the eggs and they are quite lovely nonetheless. Ok – there is some fat in the chocolate drizzle. So sue me.

2/3 cup of white sugar
2 eggs
grated peel from one large orange
1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
Beat on medium speed until very thick and light. It should run off a spoon in a wide ribbon.

2 cups unbleached all purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup dried cranberries
3/4 cup toasted almonds, coarsely chopped
Combine and then add to egg mixture and stir until thoroughly combined. Line a heavy baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone liner. Dampen hands as the dough is quite sticky and form it into a smooth flattened rectangle or log shape about 12 x 4 inches. Bake in 350 degree oven for about 25 minutes, until nicely browned and fairly firm to the touch. Remove to a cooling rack for 15 minutes or so and then cut into diagonal slices about 3/4 in thick. A serrated bread knife works well for this. Lay slices on the same parchment paper lined cookie sheet and return to the oven.

Now, don’t tell Mario Batalli or Giada DeLaurentis, but I don’t like my biscotti rock hard like it is supposed to be. If you do, then bake the slices about 10 minutes more, turn over and bake another 10 minutes. I prefer to bake them about 5 minutes per side which gives them a nice firm texture without needing a chisel to break off a piece. Either way, after removing from the oven, cool completely.

1/2 cup semi sweet or dark chocolate baking chips
2 teaspoons shortening or butter
Melt in microwave, 10 seconds at a time, stirring in between until you can stir it to a smooth consistency. You can use a fork to drizzle the melted chocolate over the cooled cookies, or spoon it into a ziplock bag, cut off a corner and squeeze/drizzle it over them. Either way, there will be little leftover melted chocolate to clean up. Yum. Cool completely until chocolate is solidified and store in an airtight container. They keep quite a while, not that you will have to worry about them going bad before they get eaten.