Great for tea time, lunch time, even bedtime-snack time, biscotti are a versatile and enduring cookie to have in your baking arsenal. In Italian biscotti means “twice cooked”, to describe the double-baking process that gives biscotti their signature crunch and ensures they stay tasty even weeks after making them.
Ingredients
-
75 gm / ¾ cup Mirage Margarine, melted
300 gm / 1½ cups Granulated sugar
3 Eggs, large size
2 Egg yolks
30 ml / 2 tbsp Vanilla extract
400 gm / 3 cups All-purpose flour
6 gm / 1 tbsp Baking powder
5 gm / 2 tsp Salt
130 gm / 1 cup Dried cherries
250 gm / 1 cup White chocolate, cut into chunks or chips
Directions
- Pre-heat oven to 325°F(160°C).
- In a large bowl with an electric mixer, cream the melted Mirage Margarine, sugar, salt, vanilla extract, egg yolks and whole eggs on high speed for 3 minutes, or until smooth and fluffy. Scrape down the sides several times with a rubber spatula.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, dried cherries and white chocolate.
- Scrape down the margarine and egg mixture with a spatula and add in all the contents from the flour bowl.
- Mix on low, just until the dough is combined and even. Over-mixing will make a tough cookie, so stop once the flour is no longer visible.
- Roll the dough out onto a piece of parchment dusted with flour. The parchment should be cut to fit your baking sheet.
- Dust the dough with flour and press down with your hands to form a long rectangle, approximately 2 cm in height with a width of about 12 cm. Keep your hands dusted with flour to prevent the dough from sticking to your hands.
- Once the dough is shaped, transfer the dough and parchment onto your baking sheet and place in the oven.
- Bake until the edges are golden and the top is no longer wet, approximately 8-12 minutes. Gently press down on the top of the large cookie. If it bounces back like a soft cake it’s ready to come out. If not, leave it in for a few more minutes.
- Remove the cookie from the oven, transfer to a cutting board and allow to cool for 20 minutes.
- Using a serrated bread knife, cut the cookie width-wise into 2cm wide biscotti that are 12cm long.
- Place the cookies, standing up, back onto the parchment lined baking sheet with a space between each cookie.
- Drop the oven temperature to 275°F(135°C). Place the cookies in the oven and allow to bake for 15 minutes more until the centers are dry and firm.
- Remove from the oven and allow to cool before enjoying.
Notes
- Biscotti will keep well in an air tight container for several weeks. This makes them perfect for having on hand when guests drop in.
- Substitute the measures of chocolate chips and cherries for any mixture of chocolate, dried fruit and/or nuts.