October 3
I was invited over to someone’s house for dinner this past weekend. One of my first thoughts upon being invited was, “Yes, I get to bake something!” After spending a few days thinking about what I could bring as a ‘thank you’, I decided that these chocolate hazelnut biscotti were the perfect option. I took a few things into consideration to make this assessment:
- -First, everyone loves chocolate and hazelnut (right?!).
- -Second, the biscotti are super easy to pack up and transport. Avoiding a mess on the subway (and in my purse) is essential.
- -Third, I am confident that most people can eat these every day, with a cup of their favourite hot beverage, and never get sick of them.
- -Last, they freeze super well, which means you aren’t forcing someone to eat tons of dessert if that’s not in their regular routine (although I would have no trouble finishing them off).
- The only problem was that I don’t make biscotti very often. I made a batch once a few years ago but didn’t have a go-to recipe. That situation always called for some recipe sleuthing. When I’m trying to find a recipe, I tend to look up recipes with good reviews, write down all of the ingredients, and compare. What is the ratio of sugar v. flour v. eggs that recipes tend to use? What temperature and how long are they baked for? Etc. Sometimes I find a pretty consistent base recipe. Unfortunately, this time, there were a lot of differences in the recipes that I found. I am not practiced enough to really know how each ingredient impacts the final product, so I usually just have to hope for the best (needless to say, sometimes the final product does not see the light of day).
- Luckily, the recipe I cobbled together turned out great! One of the first things I was happy about was that the dough was super easy to work with. It’s always a bonus when the baking experience is hassle free. The texture is perfect. They are sturdy enough to stand up to a good dunking but aren’t too hard, crumbly or crunchy like some other biscotti that I’ve had. I am convinced that these chocolate hazelnut biscotti are the perfect snack to have with a hot cup of tea, as the weather turns colder and you need a pick me up in the middle of the day or after dinner. I also love that the biscotti are chocolatey but not too sweet and chock full of toasty hazelnuts. Also, if it wasn’t immediately obvious, definitely don’t skip on dipping the biscotti in some melted dark chocolate and rolling them in crushed hazelnuts. It just adds that little bit extra decadence and makes them feel and look extra special.
Adapted from a recipe found on allrecipes.com
In a large bowl, whisk together canola oil and sugar. Add egg and vanilla extract and whisk until completely combined.
In a medium bowl, whisk together salt, baking powder, cocoa powder and flour.
Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients. Use a wooden spoon to mix until combined.
In a food processor, pulse hazelnuts (some should be roughly chopped others quite fine).
Add hazelnuts to biscotti dough, reserving about 1/3 cup for decoration.
Gently knead the hazelnuts into the dough and roll the dough into two log (2 logs that are 12 inches long x 2 inches in diameter).
Bake the biscotti for 35 minutes. Remove the biscotti from the oven and let it cool down (this will make it easier to cut).
Turn oven down to 275F.
Slice biscotti on an angle, using a serrated knife (about 1 inch thick). Place sliced biscotti back on the baking tray.
Bake biscotti for another 8-9 minutes on each side.
Store in an airtight container (I like keeping mine in the fridge).
http://mysecondbreakfast.com/chocolate-hazelnut-biscotti-recipe/Chocolate Hazelnut Biscotti was last modified: October 2, 2016 by