Peppermint Kahlua Chocolate-Dipped Biscotti ~ #CreativeCookieExchange

I am excited to be baking again with the #CreativeCookieExchange bakers. During my absence I followed along in the background and saw all the wonderful cookie creations everyone was baking, and now I am ready to join in the fun once again. It truly is amazing how much you can miss something, especially when you have talked yourself into believing you don't need to do it any more.

Double Chocolate Cherry Biscotti

A few days ago I was doing my regular sweep of my favorite blogs and saw on Roxana's Home Baking that it was the 1st anniversary of the #chocolate party. I knew that I needed to join in on this fun event.  To celebrate we were asked to bake our family's favorite chocolate dessert.

Is it weird that one of our favorite desserts is biscotti? I know that when most people think of their favorite chocolate dessert they don't necessarily think of cookies. Now don't get me wrong, I love an ooey, gooey, decadent chocolate dessert as much as the next person - for example these Mexican Chocolate Crunch Brownies - but I don't always have time for them during the week. Biscotti on the other hand is something that I can bake over the weekend and then enjoy with my coffee after dinner, or even crumble it over a bowl of vanilla ice cream. It is also the perfect treat for my girls to enjoy when they are craving something sweet, but not too big, as they finish off their homework.

This biscotti is double the chocolate fun - cocoa and chocolate chips - and has dried cherries added to give them a little tartness.  I love chocolate and cherries together, as you would guess if you saw my secret stash of Cherry Ripe candy bars.  I can't tell you where I hide them because they are a prized possession in this household.  They are only available in Australia (or via mail-order which can be pricey) so I don't get them very often and I treat them like rations - open only in case of an emergency.

I based my recipe on one that I use from The Craft of Baking. The original recipe contained walnuts which are great, but I subbed them out for dried cherries. Be warned that the dough for these biscotti is quite wet so you may look a little like you have been playing in mud by the time you have them shaped them on the baking sheet. Just make sure you have everything set up before you put your hands in the bowl. Also, I find that mini chocolate chips work best in this recipe, but I only had regular on hand so I went with that.  These biscotti will last up to three weeks in an airtight container at room temperature, but they are gone in our household well before then.

The Chocolate Party is going on for the month of September and it is so easy to join in the fun.  All you have to do is bring your favorite chocolate dessert to Roxana's Home Baking #chocolate party and win amazing prizes from OXO, Calphalon, Keurig, Imperial Sugar, Honey Ridge Farms and Land O'LakesⓇ Butter.  I can't wait to go and check all of the amazing chocolate treats that have been brought to the party.


Double Chocolate Cherry Biscotti
(Printer Friendly Recipe)

Ingredients

• 1 cup all-purpose flour, plus more for rolling
• ⅓ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• ½ cup packed dark brown sugar
• ¼ cup granulated sugar
• 2 tablespoons butter, cut into small pieces and at room temperature
• ¼ teaspoon baking soda
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• 2 large eggs
• ¼ teaspoon espresso powder (optional)
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup dried cherries
• ½ cup mini semisweet chocolate chips

Preparation

1. Preheat the oven to 350℉ and line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. 
2. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the flour, cocoa, both sugars, butter, baking soda, and salt. Beat on low speed until all ingredients are well combined and the butter is no longer visible (about 4 minutes).
3. In a medium bowl whisk together the eggs, espresso powder, and vanilla.
4. Add egg mixture to the flour mixture and beat on low speed to combine.
5. Add the dried cherries and chocolate chips and beat to combine.
6. Turn out the dough on a generously floured work surface and divide in half. Shape each portion into a 16x2-inch log, and carefully transfer each one to the prepared baking sheets.
7. Bake, rotating the baking sheets halfway through, until the logs are firm to touch, about 20 minutes. Transfer the logs, still on the parchment paper, to a wire rack and let cool slightly, about 5 minutes. Reduce the oven temperature to 300℉.
8. Transfer the warm logs to a cutting board and, using a serrated knife, cut the logs on the diagonal into ⅓-inch-thick slices.
9. Arrange the slices, cut side up, on the parchment covered baking sheet.
10. Bake for 30 minutes and remove baking sheets from the oven and flip each biscotti piece over.
11. Return baking sheets to the oven and continue to bake for another 30 minutes and the biscotti are dry and firm to touch.
12. Remove the baking sheets from the oven and let the biscotti cool completely.

Recipe adapted by ATLATC from The Craft of Baking.

Chai Latte Biscotti

I am a little chai obsessed and a little biscotti obsessed so this was a match made in heaven for me. The recipe comes from an Australian Women's Weekly cookbook called Sweet Things, which I received for Mother's Day from one of my daughters.  She knows me well, and after looking through the book I gave up putting sticky notes on the recipes I wanted to try since it was obvious that I wanted to try them all!  Look for more treats from this book as I bake my way through it.

Biscotti is the perfect accompaniment to a good cup of tea or coffee.  My preference is for a slightly thicker biscotti so that I can dunk it - yes, I am a dunker - so after the first bake I cut mine slightly thicker than the recipe suggests.  I need a little structural integrity to my biscotti because the dunking does weaken them, and there is nothing worse than a sinking cookie in your beverage.  Also, be careful not to over bake them because they will turn into lethal weapons for your teeth.

The spice mix in these cookies is really nice, but the next time I bake them I will probably up the quantities a little bit.  The original recipe did not call for star anise or peppercorn, but I love the flavor of a spicy chai.  Also, in an effort to start cleaning out my pantry, I used salted shelled pistachios because I have a big bag of them that I purchased from Sam's Club.  It didn't seem to make the recipe too salty, so if that is what you have I say go for it.

Chai Latte Biscotti
(Printer Friendly Recipe)

Ingredients

• 1 English Breakfast tea bag
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• ¼ cup self-rising flour
• 1 teaspoon ground ginger
• ½ teaspoon ground cardamom
• ½ teaspoon ground cloves
• ½ teaspoon ground star anise
• ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
• ¼ teaspoon ground black peppercorn
• ½ cup dark brown sugar, firmly packed
• 1 egg
• 1 tablespoon honey
• ½ cup roasted, unsalted pistachios

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 350℉.
2. Line a baking sheet with a Silpat or parchment.
3. To the bowl of a food processor; add the contents of the teabag, flours and spices and process until fine.
4. Whisk brown sugar, egg and honey in a medium bowl until well combined.
5. Stir in the flour mixture and nuts.
6. Using you hands make sure everything comes together and then place on a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth.
7. Shape the dough into a log, about 10 inches long and place on prepared sheet.
8. Bake for about 30 minutes, and then cool completely on sheet.
9. Reduce oven temperature to 300℉.
10. Using a serrated knife, cut the log diagonally into 1/4-inch slices, and place slices in a single layer back on the sheet.
11. Bake for 15 minutes and then turn them over.
12. Return sheet to the oven and bake for a further 15 minutes, or until biscotti are dry and crisp.
13. Cool on a wire rack.

Recipe slightly adapted from Sweet Things by the Australian Women's Weekly.