As the holidays approach, the delightful aroma of freshly baked biscotti fills the air, evoking a sense of warmth and togetherness. These classic Italian cookies, known for their crisp texture and flavorful variations, make an ideal treat to share with loved ones during festive gatherings. Whether you prefer traditional almond biscotti or indulge in creative flavors like cranberry orange or pistachio, this guide will lead you through the delightful journey of creating the perfect holiday biscotti, ensuring they become a cherished part of your festive traditions.
Here are our top 10 tried and tested recipes!
HOLIDAY BISCOTTI
Provided by Giada De Laurentiis
Categories dessert
Time 1h20m
Yield 2 dozen cookies
Number Of Ingredients 11
Steps:
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
- Line a heavy large baking sheet with parchment paper. Whisk the flour and baking powder in a medium bowl to blend. Using an electric mixer, beat the sugar, butter, lemon zest, and salt in a large bowl to blend. Beat in the eggs 1 at a time. Add the flour mixture and beat just until blended. Stir in the pistachios and cranberries.
- Form the dough into a 13-inch long, 3-inch wide log on the prepared baking sheet. Bake until light golden, about 40 minutes. Cool for 30 minutes.
- Place the log on the cutting board. Using a sharp serrated knife, cut the log on a diagonal into 1/2 to 3/4-inch-thick slices. Arrange the biscotti, cut side down, on the baking sheet. Bake the biscotti until they are pale golden, about 15 minutes. Transfer the biscotti to a rack and cool completely.
- Stir the chocolate in a bowl set over a saucepan of simmering water until the chocolate melts. Dip half of the biscotti into the melted chocolate. Gently shake off the excess chocolate. Place the biscotti on the baking sheet for the chocolate to set. Sprinkle with the sugar crystals. Refrigerate until the chocolate is firm, about 35 minutes.
- The biscotti can be made ahead. Store them in an airtight container up to 4 days, or wrap them in foil and freeze in resealable plastic bags up to 3 weeks.
DOUBLE CHOCOLATE HOLIDAY BISCOTTI
For me, the combination of chocolate and citrus during the holidays is a given. I packed that combo into these decadent biscotti that are perfect for dipping in an afternoon coffee or evening vin santo.
Provided by Giada De Laurentiis
Categories dessert
Time 1h45m
Yield approximately 20 biscotti
Number Of Ingredients 10
Steps:
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper, dust with 1/4 cup flour and set aside.
- In a medium bowl, combine the sugar, butter, orange marmalade, orange zest and salt. Using a handheld mixer, beat on medium speed until the mixture is smooth, light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Beat in the eggs one at a time. Add the remaining 2 cups of flour, cocoa powder and baking powder and beat until just blended. Using a rubber spatula, stir in the chocolate chips.
- On the prepared pan, form the dough into a 3-by-13-inch log. (Using a small offset spatula or dusting your hands with flour will help keep the dough from sticking to your hands.) Bake until the log is firm to the touch, cracked on top and looks dry, about 35 minutes. Cool for 30 minutes on the tray.
- Place the log on a cutting board and using a serrated knife, cut the log on a diagonal into 1/2-inch slices. Arrange the biscotti cut-side down on the tray. Bake until they are a dry and fragrant, an additional 20 to 25 minutes. Transfer the biscotti to a cooling rack and cool completely.
HOLIDAY BISCOTTI
A twice-baked Italian cookie, biscotti makes a wonderful "dunker." A pretty way to present a batch is on a seasonal plate arranged in a wagon-wheel fashion. -Libia Foglesong, San Bruno, California
Provided by Taste of Home
Categories Desserts
Time 1h10m
Yield 2 dozen.
Number Of Ingredients 11
Steps:
- In a bowl, cream butter and sugar. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Stir in extracts. Combine flour, baking powder and salt; gradually add to creamed mixture and mix well (dough will be sticky). Stir in cranberries, pistachios and orange zest. Chill for 30 minutes. , Divide dough in half. On a floured surface, shape each half into a loaf 1-1/2 to 2-in. diameter. Place on an ungreased baking sheet. Bake at 350° for 30-35 minutes. , Cool for 5 minutes. Cut diagonally into 3/4-in. thick slices. Place slices, cut side down, on an ungreased baking sheet. Bake for 9-10 minutes. Turn slices over. Bake 10 minutes more or until golden brown. Cool on wire rack. Store in an airtight container.
Nutrition Facts : Calories 164 calories, Fat 6g fat (3g saturated fat), Cholesterol 37mg cholesterol, Sodium 144mg sodium, Carbohydrate 24g carbohydrate (11g sugars, Fiber 1g fiber), Protein 3g protein.
HOLIDAY BISCOTTI WITH CRANBERRIES AND PISTACHIOS
Steps:
- Preheat oven to 325°F. Line 3 large baking sheets with parchment paper. Sift first 3 ingredients into medium bowl. Using electric mixer, beat butter and sugar in large bowl to blend well. Beat in eggs 1 at a time. Mix in lemon peel, vanilla, and aniseed. Beat in flour mixture just until blended. Stir in cranberries and pistachios (dough will be sticky). Turn dough out onto lightly floured surface. Gather dough together; divide in half. Roll each half into 15-inch-long log (about 1 1/4 inches wide). Carefully transfer logs to 1 prepared baking sheet, spacing 3 inches apart.
- Bake logs until almost firm to touch but still pale, about 28 minutes. Cool logs on baking sheet 10 minutes. Maintain oven temperature.
- Carefully transfer logs still on parchment to cutting board. Using serrated knife and gentle sawing motion, cut logs crosswise into generous 1/2-inch-thick slices. Place slices, 1 cut side down, on remaining 2 prepared sheets. Bake until firm and pale golden, about 9 minutes per side. Transfer cookies to racks and cool.
- Line another baking sheet with waxed paper. Stir white chocolate in top of double boiler over barely simmering water just until smooth. Remove from over water. Dip 1 end of each cookie into melted chocolate, tilting pan if necessary; shake off excess chocolate. Place cookies on prepared sheet. Chill until chocolate is firm, about 30 minutes. (Can be made 5 days ahead. Store airtight between sheets of waxed paper at room temperature.)
HOLIDAY BISCOTTI
While the day following Thanksgiving is a major shopping day for many, in my family it represents the start of our annual cookie baking. I was looking for a cookie, preferably a biscotti to use some extra almond flour and could not find one. A little tinkering with one of my favorite basic biscotti recipes and a new holiday cookie was born. These are large biscotti, perfectly sized for dunking.
Provided by justcallmetoni
Categories Dessert
Time 1h10m
Yield 38 serving(s)
Number Of Ingredients 14
Steps:
- Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Prepare baking sheet with a light coat of cooking spray.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine the sugar, baking soda, salt, eggs and extracts together.
- Add in the almond flour and 2 cups of all purpose flour and mix with a large wooden spoon.
- Begin stirring in the nuts and candied fruit. Sprinkle in the remain 1/4 cup of flour. At this point you will need to put the spoon down and knead by hand. Knead 8 or 9 times until the fruit and nuts are well distributed.
- Divide the dough in half and shape into logs about 9-10 inches long. Be sure that your logs are of an even width from top to bottom. Place on baking sheet several inches apart and lightly flatten the top. (Note the width of the loaves will double in baking.).
- In a small bowl, combine egg and water and blend. Using a pastry brush apply a light egg wash to the tops of each loaf.
- Bake for 30-35 minutes. Remove from oven and cool on rack for 8-10 minutes.
- Take loaves and slice on diagonal making wedges 1/2 inch thick. Place slices on baking sheet cut sides up and bake for 3-5 minutes. Turn the cookies over and return to the oven and bake an additional 5-8 minutes. Cookies will be dry and crisp to the touch.
- Place on rack and allow to cool completely before storing.
- Note: For holiday trays you can also make smaller biscotti by dividing the dough into 3 loaves. Reduce initial baking time to 25 minutes. Use the lower ranges in the times given for the second baking. In thirds, my loaves were about 4 inches long, longer when cut on the diagonal.
HOLIDAY GINGERBREAD BISCOTTI
This was a long one to type, but very much worth it! This recipe would make a wonderful gift for Christmas 8)
Provided by OceanIvy
Categories Dessert
Time 1h20m
Yield 40 biscotti
Number Of Ingredients 12
Steps:
- Preheat oven to 350°.
- Place almonds into a 8 or 9-inch square pan; bake until golden, 10-15 minutes. Let cool.
- Coarsely chop almonds, set aside for now.
- In large bowl, using electric mixer, beat sugar, butter, molasses and ginger until smooth.
- Add eggs, one at a time, beating after each addition.
- In a bowl, stir flour, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, allspice and the almonds.
- Add into the egg mixture; stir to blend.
- On 2 greased 12x15-inch baking sheets with floured hands, pat dough into 4 flat loaves.
- Space evenly on sheets; each loaf about 1/2-inch thick, 2 inches wide and the length of the baking sheet.
- Bake until browned at edges and springy to the touch, about 25 minutes. Switch positions of pans halfway through baking.
- Let loaves stand on sheets until cool enough to touch, then cut into long, 1/2-inch thick diagonal slices.
- On baking sheets, arrange slices close together with cut side down.
- Return to oven bake 15 to 18 minutes longer; switch positions of pans halfway through baking.
HOLIDAY EGGNOG BISCOTTI
One of our family favorite comfort foods, nice crunchy, sweet biscotti to dip in a warm cup of tea or coffee! That is if the kids don't find them...these don't last long at our house!
Provided by Jean Goss
Categories Sweet Breads
Time 45m
Number Of Ingredients 9
Steps:
- 1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- 2. Combine butter, sugar and eggs in mixer for about a minute. Mix in rum extract and eggnog and blend well.
- 3. Mix dry ingredients in a separate bowl. Add the dry to wet in small batches until well blended.
- 4. Place on a floured board and shape into two elongated loaves approximately 14 inches long. Place on the baking sheet and flatten to about 1/2 inch. Bake in oven for 25 minutes or until golden brown.
- 5. Let cool slightly, then slice into 1/2 slices, laying them on their side back onto the cookie sheet. Lover oven to 200 and bake until completely dry, turning every 20 minutes.
- 6. After cool, you can combine 1 cup powerded sugar, 1 teaspoon rum flavoring and 2-3 tablespoons of eggnog to create a drizzle to splash across the biscotti! Enjoy...
MY HOLIDAY BISCOTTI WITH CRANBERRIES AND PISTACHIOS
Steps:
- Directions Preheat oven to 325°F. Line 2 large baking sheet with parchment paper. Sift first 4 ingredients into medium bowl. Using electric mixer, beat butter and sugar in large bowl to blend well. Beat in eggs 1 at a time. Mix in orange peel and vanilla. Beat in flour mixture just until blended. Stir in cranberries and pistachios (dough will be sticky). Turn dough out onto lightly floured surface. Gather dough together; divide in half. Roll each half into 10 to 12-inch-long log (roughly 2 inches wide). Carefully transfer logs to 1 prepared baking sheet, spacing 3 inches apart. Bake logs until almost firm to touch but still pale, about 28 to 30 minutes. Let logs cool on baking sheet for at least one hour. Preheat oven again to 325 degrees F. Carefully transfer logs still on parchment to cutting board. Using a very sharp non-serrated knife, slice logs crosswise (and slightly diagonal) into generous 1/2-inch-thick slices. Place slices, 1 cut side down, on prepared sheets*. Bake until firm and pale golden, about 9 minutes per side. Transfer cookies to racks and cool. *Can be baked on edges to retain green pistachio color for 20 minutes, otherwise follow instructions to bake on sliced sides. Optional Line another baking sheet with waxed paper. Stir white chocolate in top of double boiler over barely simmering water just until smooth. Remove from over water. Dip 1 end of each cookie into melted chocolate, tilting pan if necessary; shake off excess chocolate. Place cookies on prepared sheet. Chill until chocolate is firm, about 30 minutes. (Can be made 5 days ahead. Store airtight between sheets of waxed paper at room temperature.)
HOLIDAY BISCOTTI
Steps:
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a heavy large baking sheet with parchment paper. Whisk the flour and baking powder in a medium bowl to blend. Using an electric mixer, beat the sugar, butter, lemon zest, and salt in a large bowl to blend. Beat in the eggs 1 at a time. Add the flour mixture and beat just until blended. Stir in the pistachios and cranberries. Form the dough into a 13-inch long, 3-inch wide log on the prepared baking sheet. Bake until light golden, about 40 minutes. Cool for 30 minutes. Place the log on the cutting board. Using a sharp serrated knife, cut the log on a diagonal into 1/2 to 3/4-inch-thick slices. Arrange the biscotti, cut side down, on the baking sheet. Bake the biscotti until they are pale golden, about 15 minutes. Transfer the biscotti to a rack and cool completely. Stir the chocolate in a bowl set over a saucepan of simmering water until the chocolate melts. Dip half of the biscotti into the melted chocolate. Gently shake off the excess chocolate. Place the biscotti on the baking sheet for the chocolate to set. Sprinkle with the sugar crystals. Refrigerate until the chocolate is firm, about 35 minutes. The biscotti can be made ahead. Store them in an airtight container up to 4 days, or wrap them in foil and freeze in resealable plastic bags up to 3 weeks.
HOLIDAY BISCOTTI
These can be made ahead of time. Arrange in single layer in airtight container and chill up to 5 days or freeze up to 2 weeks. I cut mine at a slight angle to make them a bit longer. Also, I only got about 2 dozen biscotti from this recipe because I cut them about 3/4-1-inch wide. Any thinner and they would have crumbled. Allow...
Provided by Opal Jackson-Cakmak
Categories Cakes
Number Of Ingredients 10
Steps:
- 1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Line large baking sheet with parchment paper. Whisk flour, baking powder, and salt in medium bowl to blend. Using electric mixer, beat sugar, eggs, oil, and almond extract or Amaretto liquor in large bowl until well blended. Add flour mixture and beat until smooth. Stir in pistachios, dried cranberries, and 3/4 cup chopped white chocolate by hand. Divide dough in half and form into two 12-inch-long strips on prepared baking sheet, spacing strips 3 inches apart. Using wet fingertips, shape each strip into 3-inch-wide log, pressing for even thickness. Logs may look slightly lumpy, but try to make the top as smooth as possible by pressing the cranberries and pistachios into the dough. Bake logs until lightly browned, about 30 minutes. Cool logs on sheet for a minimum of 30 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 325°F. Carefully transfer logs to cutting board and slice about 1/2-3/4-inch thick. Place them back on the same baking sheet with parchment paper (I used the same sheet) standing biscotti upright, spacing about 1/4 inch apart, in 3 rows. Bake until pale golden (biscotti may be soft but will firm as they cool), about 20 minutes. Allow to cool completely on baking sheet. Line another large baking sheet with parchment paper. Place remaining chopped white chocolate in medium glass bowl. Microwave on a low temp for 30seconds at a time, until smooth. Dip one end or 1 side of each biscotti in chocolate; place on baking sheet. Chill until chocolate is set, about 30 minutes.
Tips:
- Use high-quality ingredients. The better the ingredients, the better the biscotti will be. Use real butter, fresh eggs, and high-quality flour.
- Don't overmix the dough. Overmixing will make the biscotti tough. Mix the dough just until it comes together.
- Chill the dough before baking. Chilling the dough will help it hold its shape and make it easier to slice.
- Bake the biscotti until they are golden brown. Don't underbake them, or they will be soft and chewy. Overbaking will make them hard and dry.
- Slice the biscotti while they are still warm. This will make it easier to get clean, even slices.
- Store the biscotti in an airtight container. Biscotti can be stored at room temperature for up to two weeks.
Conclusion:
Biscotti are a delicious and versatile treat that can be enjoyed on their own or served with coffee, tea, or ice cream. With so many different flavor variations, there's sure to be a biscotti recipe that everyone will love.
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