Sorry for the lack of posts last week- I had to go on travel for work. But up-side: I was in California instead of staring into the waste of space that is my cubicle. :)
Due to the cooling weather and the end of DST, I really wanted to make a Fall-inspired dessert this weekend, but more some reason, I really really wanted to make biscotti. Or rather, more selfishly, I wanted biscotti on hand for some extremely tasty, breakfast-on-the-go cookies (Yes, I said cookie...no reason to try to talk myself into thinking their something healthier. But they are oh so good!). This week's Chocolate Hazelnut Biscotti comes from the JoyofBaking.com.
How Long Is This Gonna Take:About 2 hours start to finish. However note that biscotti is a twice-baked cookie, so the majority of that 2 hours is purely baking aka time you can sit on your butt and get caught up on Grey's Anatomy (or at least that's what I do hehe)
What You'll Need:
1 cup hazelnuts (I found pre-chopped nuts in the baking aisle. My grocery store didn't sell whole)
4 oz coarsely chopped semisweet or bittersweet chocolate (I used semisweet)
1 cup brown sugar, lightly packed
1 3/4 cup flour
1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 tbsp instant espresso powder (or 1.5 tbsp instant coffee powder)
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
3 large eggs
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
What To Do:
1. Preheat oven to 350F. Spread hazelnuts on baking sheet and bake for about 15 minutes, or until lightly browned and the skins begin to blister and peel. Remove from oven and place nuts in a clean dish towel. Roll up towel and let nuts "steam" for 5 minutes. Then briskly rub towel (with nuts inside) to remove the skins. Cool and then coarsely chop.
2. Reduce oven temperature to 300F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
3. In a food processor, place the coarsely chopped chocolate and brown sugar and process until chocolate is very fine. (We don't have a food processor, so I had to use our Magic Bullet...it seemed to work ok). It should look like dark brown sugar, the chocolate and sugar completely integrated
4. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, cocoa powder, espresso powder, baking soda, and salt.
5. In a separate large bowl, beat eggs and vanilla extract until combined. Add chocolate/sugar mixture and the flour mixture. Beat until a stiff dough forms, adding hazelnuts about halfway through mixing.
6. With floured hands and on a floured surface, divide dough in half. Roll each half into a log about 10 inches long and 2 inches wide. Transfer logs onto lined baking sheet, spaced about 3 inches apart. Bake until almost firm to the touch, about 35-40 minutes. Remove from oven, place on wire racks, and cool for 10 minutes.
7. Use a spatula to transfer logs onto a cutting board. Using a long, serrated knife, cut the dough into slices, 3/4 inch thick on the diagonal. Arrange the slices cut slide down on the baking sheet. Bake for 15 min, turn slices over and bake for another 15 minutes, or until crisp and dry.
8. Remove from oven and allow to cool on a wire rack. These will keep in an airtight container for several weeks so you'll have plenty to snack on :)
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