Tuesday, July 3, 2012

TWD BWJ - Biscotti

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I think every baker has something they fear, whether it be caramel, pastry or decorating cakes. For me in the past it has been biscotti. Sounds crazy for something so simple but I have never been able to get it right! So in an attempt to overcome this silly fear I made this week's pick twice (which I never do).

I have a huge bag of raw almonds in the fridge so that's what I went with rather than buying hazelnuts. 

Batch one I made with almonds, vanilla and cinnamon and replaced the booze with milk. The dough mixed up well, looked great when it was baked but then pretty much fell apart when I sliced it. So I ended up with chunky crumbly-edged tooth-breakers. Really tasty dunked in tea but not much good for anything else!

Batch two I made with almonds, cocoa and brandy. I chopped the nuts up more finely and when it came time to slice I used my best serrated knife and took it really slowly. 

© food-baby.blogspot.com All rights reserved

Success!  These were pretty much the perfect biscotti. I got the size right, they sliced cleanly and were lovely and toasty. And of course delicious! I would happy giving these as gifts come Christmas time which is a pretty big tick of approval!

Our hosts this week are Jodi of Homemade and Wholesome and Katrina of Baking and Boys. They will have the recipe for the original hazelnut biscotti on their blogs so make sure you go and check it out!

18 comments:

  1. Yes, this is a great biscotti recipe. The cocoa and brandy ones sound fantastic!

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  2. The second batch with cocoa look great.. I love the colour as a result of which the almonds stand out and really add to the visual appeal.. and you even got great shape and height!! Fantastic!!

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  3. How delicious! I love your 2 versions.

    Julia's biscotti is amazingly yummy... a winner!
    I've tripled the dough at the very beginning to make 3 version and loved them all (too much)!

    Besides I am so glad to have learned the technique of blanching almonds and hazelnuts...it's very handy!

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    1. Wow a triple batch! I think even with that many they wouldn't last long! Always great to learn a new technique isn't it?

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  4. Nice flavour choices! We made it twice, too, because we couldn't decide between two variations. Isn't it good to master something you've had trouble with in the past? I bet that made your cookies doubly delicious.

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    1. Indeed it did. I can think of so many more flavours so I'll have to make them again soon!

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  5. Your biscotti looks so rich in the center!

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  6. I'll make these again. Both versions look lovely, especially the chocolate ones.

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  7. I make biscotti all the time and have learned to refrigerate the logs for one hour before baking so that they do not crumble when cutting. It really helps. Good job conquering your fear!

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  8. Your flavor choices sound lovely - glad to hear you found success :-)

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Thanks for reading! Questions or comments? I would love to hear from you ...

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