Friday, September 30, 2011

Dried cherry walnut biscotti


This recipe is adapted (& tweaked) from the May issue of Bon Appetit magazine:


Ingredients

  • 2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1/2 cup old-fashioned oats
  • 1 tsp. baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp. baking soda
  • 1/2 tsp. salt
  • 3 large eggs
  • 3 Tbsp. vegetable oil
  • 2 tsp. lemon zest
  • 1 vanilla extract
  • 1/2 tsp. almond extract
  • 1 cup dried cherries (I use Montmorency dried cherries, avail. @Trader Joe's)
  • 1 cup chopped walnuts or shelled, chopped pistachios

Preparation

  • Preheat oven to 350°. Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper. Combine first 6 ingredients in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle. Blend on low speed for 30 seconds. Meanwhile, in a separate bowl, whisk together eggs and next 4 ingredients. Add egg mixture to flour mixture; beat on low speed until combined, about 1 1/2 minutes. Fold in cherries and nuts.

  • Transfer dough to a lightly floured surface; divide in 4 sections. Using floured hands, shape each dough half into a 8-10"-long log. Brush off excess flour; transfer logs to prepared sheet, spaced 5" apart. Flatten each log into a 2"-wide strip (these will spread/flatten out so don't flatten them TOO much). Have oven racks set (top 1/3 and bottom 1/3) and place one baking pan on each rack. Bake, rotating sheets halfway through, until lightly golden and set, about 20-25 minutes. Transfer to a rack; let cool for 15 minutes.

  • Line 2 more baking sheets with parchment paper. Transfer biscotti to a work surface. Using a sharp knife, cut each strip diagonally into 1/2 - 2/3"-thick slices. Arrange slices, cut side down, on baking sheets.
  • Bake biscotti, rotating baking sheets halfway through, until crisp, about 12-15 minutes (or longer, depending on how dark you like them). Transfer baking sheets to racks; let cool. Can be made 3 days ahead. Store in an airtight container at room temperature.

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