Kiwisizzler

Originally a staple of the Roman Legions, ‘biscotti’ is the Italian word for ‘biscuits’, being the plural of ‘biscotto’, ‘bis’ meaning ‘twice’ and ‘cotto’ meaning baked. It was important to bake the biscuits twice to ensure they would last a long time when the armies were away at war. The most common version of biscotti served today is based on ‘cantucci’, which is often served with a glass of vin santo, a sweet dessert wine. Perfect after a simple dinner digested with a view over the plains of Toscana!

In Australasia and increasingly in the UK, it is very common to find long chunks of nutty biscotti at good cafes. They are a delicious textural match to a well-made coffee and are great if they’re a little on the hard side so they can handle being dunked. Even better, make them with chunks of chocolate, which melt slightly when stirred into the coffee!

Anyway, here’s my basic recipe for almond biscotti. Think about what flavours you have in the cupboard and adapt as you like. Try using other nuts such as pistachios or hazelnuts, chocolate, dried fruit (cranberries and white chocolate is a personal favourite!), more or less citrus flavour, spices such as star anise or fennel seeds – the list goes on…

Almond Biscotti

3 1/2 C flour
2 tsp baking powder
90g butter
1 C sugar
3 eggs
1 egg white
zest of 1 orange
1/4 C chopped roasted almonds

1. Sieve flour and baking powder.
2. Cream butter and sugar
3. Add 1. to 2..
4. Beat eggs. Fold into 3).
5. Add zest and nuts.
6. Roll into logs.
7. Bake at 160 C.
8. Cool.
9. Slice and arrange on an oven rack or tray.
10. Dry in a warm oven (around 130°C) for around 10 minutes

Sliced and ready dry

The baked log - flatten before baking!