After a couple of politically-oriented posts, I’ll do a few days of food-related posts. There seem to be a lot of food days to celebrate in February, beginning with the Super Bowl.
Today is National Almond Day in the U.S. so I decided to make a recipe that’s been in my “to-make” folder for a while: Mr. Food’s Chocolate Biscotti. Prior to this, I’ve only made biscotti once; while they were delicious, I thought afterward that it wasn’t worth the hassle.
What You’ll Need:
- 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 3/4 cup baking cocoa
- 2 cups sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 5 eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 cup whole almonds
What To Do:
- Preheat oven to 350 degree F. Coat a 10″ x 15″ rimmed baking sheet with cooking spray.
- In a large bowl, combine all ingredients except almonds; mix well with a spoon. Stir in almonds until well blended; dough will be thick and sticky. Pour half the dough onto prepared baking sheet, forming a slightly rounded 4″ x 12″ loaf that is about 3/4 inch thick. Repeat with remaining batter and bake 30 minutes.
- Remove from oven and reduce temperature to 325 degree F. Allow loaves to cool 20 to 25 minutes then cut into 1/2-inch slices. Lay slices cut-side down on baking sheet and bake 15 more minutes. Turn cookies over and bake 15 more minutes. Allow to cool then store in an airtight container.
Makes about 4 dozen cookies.
I made a few changes to the recipe (because I just usually do). I used slivered almonds because I wanted them to be more evenly distributed throughout. I also mixed the sugar, eggs, and vanilla in a large bowl, and sifted the rest of the dry ingredients together before combining the two. Not sure why except that seemed like a thing.
They are good and I’ll definitely make them again. I think, however, I’ll use almond extract instead of vanilla and see how that goes.
Debra