Fruit And Nut Biscotti

“Some Biscotti with your Cappuccino, mam?”, asked the waiter of a newly opened bakery cum cafe. “Would love to”, I replied with a confident smile, in my mind wondering… “what’s that?” This was my introduction, rather, encounter with the much loved Italian delight, right here, in the by-lanes of Mumbai 🙂
Just so you know, Biscotti is the plural form of Biscotto, as opposed to how its usually referred. It means ‘baked twice’. This crunchy and more delicious cousin of Rusk, is indeed a wonderful companion to Cappuccino and has a very long shelf life.
Ingredients:
250gm plain flour
250 gm caster sugar
3 eggs, slightly beaten
1/2 tbsp baking powder
Fruit and Nuts as you like – hazelnuts, chopped dates, dried cherries, pistachios, etc.
I added:
50 gm whole almonds
50 gm black raisins
50 gm whole cashews
50 gm lightly chopped walnuts
Zest of 1 lemon

Method:
1. Preheat the oven to 180C. Line the baking trays with baking parchment.
2. Mix the flour, sugar and baking powder in a large bowl.
3. Add half the beaten eggs and mix well. Keep adding the eggs only till the dough takes shape, but isn’t too wet. You might not need all of the eggs.
4. Add the fruits, nuts, lemon zest and mix well.
5. Divide the dough into six parts. Roll each part into sausage shapes about 3cm in diameter. Place each roll at least 6 cm apart on on baking trays. This will give enough space for the cake to rise.
Tip: Dip your hands in water so the dough doesn’t stick to the hands while rolling.
6. Lightly flatten the rolls and bake for 20 – 25 minutes or until golden brown.
7.  Remove from the oven and leave for 15 minutes to cool and firm up.
8. Now reduce the temperature of the oven to 140C.
9. With a serrated knife, cut out the biscotti from the rolls at an angle into 5mm slices and lay these on the baking trays.
10. Place the trays back in the oven and bake for around 10 minutes.
11. Pull the trays out, turn the biscotti over and slide the trays back in the oven. Now cook for another 12-15 minutes or until golden brown.
12. When they look ready, remove from the oven and let them cool on the cake or wire racks.
13. Store in an airtight container.

Serve your Biscotti with coffee or tea. Just make sure you make a whole lot of them, because… 😉