Three Biscotti

I have something to confess: I have a vendetta against butter. I avoid using it as often as possible, and have passed by many a scrumptious-looking cookie recipe because of it. "1/2 cup of butter" on an ingredients list makes me cry inside.

Don't get me wrong. I love buttery things. I've just somehow gotten it into my head that something with little to no butter is a lot healthier than something with lots of butter. I'm not the healthiest eater, not by any means. But lately, I've been trying hard to make steps in the right direction, for both my sake, and the sakes of my roommates, whom I feed at least once a week.

Cue the biscotti. I've never liked biscotti. NEVER. I thought, though, that maybe that was because I'd only ever had the store-bought stuff. After all, I wasn't a big fan of fruit pies until I started making them myself. The fact that I stumbled upon a LiveJournal post about biscotti with absolutely no butter in them whatsoever looked promising. I told you. I have a problem.

Then when I was searching for recipes and found one with a comment that said that real biscotti aren't meant to have butter in them anyway, as it makes them gross after a while, I was finally convinced.

So a week ago, I took advantage of all the nuts, candy canes, and Craisins we had lying around in our cupboard, and made three different types of butter-free biscotti.



I cut my biscotti wider than you're supposed to, and my roommates got into the pumpkin ones before the biscotti could go in for their second round of baking, so I got less than expected. Still, they tasted so amazing! I am officially a biscotti fan.












PUMPKIN WALNUT BISCOTTI
from Stephanie Barlow

2 1/2 cups flour
1 cup sugar
pinch of salt
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon dried ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 eggs
1/2 cup pumpkin puree
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
1 cup white chocolate, chopped

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Whisk together flour, sugar, salt, nutmeg, ginger, cloves, cinnamon, and baking powder. In a separate large bowl, combine eggs, pumpkin, and vanilla. Gradually add flour mixture to pumpkin mixture and mix until combined.

Turn dough onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Form a rectangular log (or two logs, for smaller biscotti) about 12 inches long and 1 inch thick. Bake until dough is a light golden brown, about 30 to 35 minutes. Cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes.

Using a serrated knife, cut the log diagonally into 1/2 inch wide pieces. Return to the parchment lined baking sheet, cut side down, and bake for an additional 10 to 15 minutes, until biscotti is firm.

Melt white chocolate over slow heat (or in the microwave). Use a spoon to drizzle chocolate over one side of biscotti. Chill until set, about 30 minutes.




CHOCOLATE PEPPERMINT BISCOTTI
based on sleepwalker41's recipe

4 oz semisweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
1 cup granulated sugar
1 3/ 4 cups all-purpose flour
1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
3 eggs
2-3 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 tsp vanilla extract
a splash of peppermint extract
semisweet chocolate, melted
crushed peppermint candies/candy canes

Preheat oven to 300. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.

In a food processor fitted with a metal blade, combine the chocolate and sugar and grind until the chocolate is very fine. Set aside. In a bowl, sift together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt. Set aside.

Combine the eggs, peppermint extract, and vanilla. Beat at medium speed to blend. Reduce speed to low; add the chocolate and flour mixtures and mix until a stiff dough forms. Transfer dough to a floured surface and gather it together. Form into a log 12 inches long.

Carefully transfer the log to the prepared baking sheet. Pat to even up the shape. Bake until almost firm to the touch, about 50 minutes. Let cool for 10 minutes. Leave oven set at 300.

Using a spatula, transfer the log to a work surface. Using a serrated knife, cut on the diagonal into slices 1/2 to 3/4 inch thick. Return the slices to the baking sheet. Stand upright and bake for 25 minutes until crisp and dry.

Transfer cookies to wire racks to cool. Melt chocolate and drizzle over biscotti, then crumble candy canes over the top. Chill until hardened.

Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to a month.




CRANBERRY PISTACHIO BISCOTTI
by Gerry Meyer

1/4 cup light olive oil
3/4 cup white sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
2 eggs
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 cup dried cranberries
1 1/2 cups pistachio nuts, chopped

Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F (150 degrees C).

In a large bowl, mix together oil and sugar until well blended. Mix in the vanilla and almond extracts, then beat in the eggs. Combine flour, salt, and baking powder; gradually stir into egg mixture. Mix in cranberries and nuts by hand.

Divide dough in half. Form a log 12 inches long on a cookie sheet that has been lined with parchment paper. Dough may be sticky; wet hands with cool water to handle dough more easily.

Bake for 35 minutes in the preheated oven, or until logs are light brown. Remove from oven, and set aside to cool for 10 minutes. Reduce oven heat to 275 degrees F (135 degrees C).

Cut logs on diagonal into 3/4 inch thick slices. Lay on sides on parchment covered cookie sheet. Bake approximately 8 to 10 minutes, or until dry; cool.

* Some comments on this recipe suggested adding orange extract. I didn't, but I think it would taste perfect if you did.