Biscotti

The very first time I tasted Biscotti, I didn't take to it very much and later found that it was not the biscotti itself but the almond extract added to it. Over time, I have started liking those that don't have an overpowering taste of almond extract and have grown to love the not-so-sweet, so very dunkable biscottis. After reading through a few recipes it seemed like it was quite easy to do and in my search for a good one I came across this at the Allrecipes website that was lower fat and used olive oil instead of butter. I've made this a couple times (with a few alternations) and it's worked out great always so wanted to share this simple and delicious recipe and also send this as my entry to Zlamushka's Spoonful of Christmas Event.

These biscottis are studded with bits of sweetened cranberries, almonds and chocolate-chip. Feel free to substitute these with your favorite flavorings/nuts, dip them in melted chocolate or drizzle with some white chocolate. I just kept these simple. Biscotti, means Twice Baked and that's exactly what has to be done. They are baked first as logs which result in a slightly soft cookie which is later sliced into thinner cookies and baked again to crispy perfection.

CRANBERRY-ALMOND-CHOCOLATE BISCOTTI

Ingredients:
All-purpose flour - 1 cup
Arthur's White Whole Wheat Flour - 3/4 cup (or 3/4 cup All purpose flour)
Extra Virgin Olive Oil - 1/4 cup
Sugar - 3/4 cup
Eggs - 2 (I replaced one with 1/4 cup Egg Beaters)
Vanilla Essence - 2 tsp
Orange Zest - 1 tsp (optional)
Baking Powder - 1 tsp
Salt - 1/4 tsp (if using salted nuts, omit or reduce salt)
Craisins (Sweetened Dried Cranberries) - 1/2 cup
Semi-sweet Chocolate chips - 1/2 cup
Almonds (unsalted) - 1/2 cup, chopped

Method:
1) Pre-heat oven to 300F (150C). Cover a cookie sheet with parchment paper.

2) In a big bowl, beat oil and sugar till well-blended (a few mins). Mix in the vanilla essence and beat in the eggs.

3) In a separate bowl, combine the flours, salt and baking powder with a whisk. Gradually stir this into the egg mixture. Next, mix in the cranberries, almonds and chocolate-chips.

4) Spoon out the mixture into 2 equal logs. Wet hands with cool water and shape the dough into uniform logs (this ensures that the dough doesn't stick to your hand).
5) Bake this for 35 mins or until logs are light brown. Remove from oven and allow to cool for about 10 minutes.

6) When cool enough to touch, slice the logs at an angle to about 1/2 to 3/4 inch slices.
7) Lay them flat, back on the parchment covered cookie sheet and allow to bake for about 20-25 minutes extra or until dried out. I flipped them over after the first 10 minutes. Remove it sooner if you want them slightly chewy instead of crisp. I like them crisp so had them in for about 20-25 mins.
8) Allow to cool, so they can crisp-up and store in an airtight container.