cherry almond biscotti

Happy Mother’s Day to all of the mommies out there!  You shape the little ones and teach them well, and for those reasons alone, it’s one of the most important roles in our society. Thank you and I hope you had a wonderful day.

Now, a plain old “Happy Sunday” to everyone else!  We’ve had another gorgeous weekend of weather and I was fortunate enough to spend both of those days outside and be with my family.  This weekend was my niece’s fifth birthday party and my godson’s Christening.  Lots of kiddies, food, and quality time with loved ones.

Today I bring you a variation of my mother’s almond biscotti.  I’ve never dabbled in the world of these twice-baked dry cookies before, but was immediately tempted when I came across Bon Appetit’s most recent recipe.  Unfortunately, the reviews were a little dicey and indicated some issues with the dough, so I decided to stick with my mom’s old faithful recipe and toss in a few dried cherries for sweetness.

Cherry Almond Biscotti
Yields about 30 cookies

3 large eggs
1 pinch of salt
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 cup coarsely chopped almonds
1 cup dried cherries
2 1/2 cups unbleached flour
1 Tbsp. baking powder
1 tsp. cinnamon

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.  In a large bowl, whisk eggs and salt until liquid.  Add sugar and vanilla and whip until smooth.  Whisk in oil and then stir in nuts and cherries.

In a medium bowl, combine flour with baking powder and stir with a dry whisk to mix.  Fold flour mixture into egg mixture until all the flour is absorbed – the dough will be very soft.  Use a spatula to pour the dough onto the parchment paper, forming two separate piles a few inches apart.  Using a butter knife, shape each pile of dough into approximately 5-inch by 12-inch wide logs.  Bake approximately 30 minutes.  Cool on pan until room temperature, approximately 30 minutes.

Line another cookie sheet with parchment paper and put a fresh sheet on the first cookie sheet.  Carefully transfer the cooled logs to a cutting board.  Gently slice each log diagonally into 1-inch  slivers using a sharp serrated knife.  Carefully transfer the biscotti onto the paper, cut side down.  Bake 20-25 minutes longer, flipping biscotti over halfway through.  They will be deep golden in color when they are finished.

A few notes:

• I used a sharp bread knife.  It is important to take your time and slice the cookies slowly.  The dough is fragile and can easily crack and break.
• If cherries and almonds aren’t your thing, try any variation of dried fruit and nuts – the options are endless.
• If you really want to sweeten this cookie up, try drizzling with some melted chocolate.
• Goes well crumbled over a scoop of vanilla ice cream… Decadence.