PEPPERMINT BISCOTTI

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375°F Line a cookie sheet with foil and set aside.
• Beat butter for 30 seconds in a large mixing bowl.
• Add sugar, baking powder and salt, beat until well combined.
• Add eggs and peppermint extract.
• Gradually beat in as much flour as you can and stir in the remaining flour.
• Mix in the chopped candies.
• Form the biscotti: Divide dough in half and tint one portion of dough with food coloring. (I dyed my dough a dark pink with liquid food coloring...if you wish for a red dough, use red paste food coloring. )
• Divide each half of dough into three equal portions.
• Roll each portion into a 14 inch long rope on a lightly floured surface. Place a rope of each color side by side on the foil lined cookie sheet and twist ropes around each other several times.
• Flatten twists to a 2 inch width. Repeat this process with the remaining ropes of dough and place each twist about 4 inches apart on cookie sheet.
• Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until lightly browned and tops are slightly cracked. Cool completely on cookie sheet.
• Reduce oven temperature to 300°F
• Carefully peel away foil and transfer twists to a wooden chopping board. Use a serrated knife to cut each twist diagonally into ½ inch thick slices.
• Place slices onto ungreased cookie sheet and bake for 10 minutes.
• Remove from oven, turn over and bake for an additional 10-15 minutes, until biscotti slices are dry. Allow biscotti to cool completely.
• To make peppermint icing: Combine milk, peppermint extract and sugar. If icing is too thick, add milk in tiny amounts until it is of a drizzling consistency.
• Lightly drizzle all biscotti in a zigzag fashion.
• Add red food coloring to leftover icing (if mixture thickens, add a little more milk) and lightly drizzle biscotti in the opposite direction of the white icing drizzle zigzags.
• Eat within 3 days and store in an airtight container. These freeze well (just make sure you drizzle with icing after freezing, not before).