Candy cane biscotti

These days, I’ve switched over from coffee to chai tea for my morning ritual. Without a stovetop and fresh spices, the next best alternative is brewing a bag of Tazo chai tea and loading it up with some light cream. It makes for a very rich and satisfying morning pick-me-up. Now, I know it may sound strange- chai tea and candy cane biscotti? Don’t ask why, but somehow it works.

These biscotti are lovely in texture and flavor. By under-baking just a bit, they remain soft and slightly chewy rather than completely dried out as traditional biscotti are. You can taste the hint of peppermint from the candy canes. They are subtle but enough to remind you of the holiday spirit.

Candy Cane Biscotti
Recipe by Land O Lakes

Ingredients:
1/2 cup butter softened (1 stick)
1/2 cup sugar
3 eggs
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
2/3 cup finely crushed peppermint candy canes

Method:
Heat oven to 350°F. Cream the butter and sugar in a large bowl. If it’s hard to soften the butter, boil a cup of water and leave it in the microwave along with the butter. The steam will help soften the butter without melting it. Then, add the eggs and continue beating until everything is well mixed. Reduce the speed to low and add the flour/baking powder. Finally, stir in crushed candy canes.

At this point, you should have a somewhat wet batter. If it is too wet (as in the dough sticks to your hand and there’s no way to shape it), add some more flour. Lightly flour a baking sheet and shape the biscotti into a long loaf. The recipe suggests 9×1 1/2-inch logs, but I thought that was too small so I just shaped it into one large loaf. You’ll get bigger biscotti this way.

Bake for 18 to 20 minutes or until tops are cracked and ends just start to turn light brown. As a reader suggested, be sure to line the baking sheet with parchment paper to prevent the wet dough from sticking. Remove from oven; reduce oven temperature to 325°F. Cool logs 10 minutes on cookie sheet.

(I mentioned above that by under-baking them, the biscotti remain soft. To do this, you want to bake for under 15 minutes. The issue is that you won’t have beautiful, clean cut biscotti as the dough inside will still be a bit wet. That dough will cook as you re-bake the biscotti, but it won’t completely dry out like traditional biscotti).

Carefully remove logs to cutting surface. Cut into 1/2-inch slices with sharp serrated knife. I like to cut the loaf on a diagonal. Arrange pieces on same cookie sheet, cut-side down. Continue baking for 12 to 14 minutes, turning once, or until cookies are lightly browned and crisp on both sides. Remove to wire cooling rack; cool completely.

You can visit the original recipe for a coating, but I thought these were more than sufficient. I was also able to use 3/4 cup of butter and they came out quite well. They also definitely did not take the 2:25 hrs that Land O Lakes indicated. Roughly a bit under 1:30 hrs!

Check out the Yahoo Shine Supper Club for more holiday recipes!