Almond Biscotti

White chocolate dipped biscotti with cups of coffee.

5 from 1 vote

A holiday tradition, homemade Almond Biscotti is the classic Italian twice-baked cookie, a simple treat dunked in your morning coffee! They're surprisingly easy to make, crisp and light with almond flour, almonds and almond extract, and make a perfect gift!

Prep Time20

Cook Time1 5

cooling time30

Total Time1 55

Course: Breakfast, Dessert

Cuisine: American, Italian

Servings: cookies

Calories: 124kcal

Author: Meryl Downing

Ingredients

3 eggs (divided)
1 cup sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
¼ teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons almond extract
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
4 Tablespoons butter melted and slightly cooled
½ cup almonds (see notes)
1 cup almond flour
1½ cups flour

Instructions

Preheat oven to 325℉.
Add the 3 eggs to a large bowl and whisk vigorously for 1 minute. Using a measuring spoon, remove 2 Tablespoons of the whisked eggs to a small bowl and reserve for the egg wash.
Add the sugar, baking soda, salt, almond extract, vanilla extract and melted butter to the eggs and whisk again for 1 minute.
Add the almonds, almond flour, and flour and fold in with a spatula until a sticky dough forms.
Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. Cut the dough in half in the bowl and scoop each to the parchment paper. Shape into 2 rectangular flat loaves, about 3 x 8 inches each. Use a butter knife to shape the dough, it will be sticky.
Brush the dough logs with the egg wash, the tops and sides. Use the butter knife or a spatula to smooth the tops and sides.
Bake for 30 to 35 minutes until just baked through. Allow to cool for 30 minutes.
Carefully remove the loaves to a cutting board. Use a serrated bread knife to slice into ¾ inch cookies at a slight diagonal, using a gentle sawing motion.
Add the slices back to the parchment paper cut side up. Bake 15 minutes, flip the slices, then bake 15 to 20 minutes more, until crisp and golden.
Optional - Dip the ends into melted white or regular chocolate.

Notes

- Almonds - You can use Sliced Almonds or Whole Almonds and roughly chop them. This is a big variation in the way the biscotti looks, and there are pro's and con's to each. I used slice almonds, which are easy, and the baked loaves are easily sliced into cookies without the knife hitting an almond chunk and breaking the cookie. Whole raw almonds, just chopped a little, will give you those big beautiful pieces in the finished cookie. But, be careful when you slice the biscotti loaf into the cookies, use a serrated knife and gently saw back and forth to get through the chunks of nuts. Slivered almonds will be somewhere in between. Use raw, plain nuts, nothing roasted, salted or flavored.

- Whisking is Important - Really beat the eggs, and then really whisk the sugar and other ingredients into the eggs for a fluffy, pale yellow consistency. This is important for tender biscotti.

- Handling and Shaping the Dough - The dough is sticky and a little tough to handle. You can flour your hands, but really the best is to plop the 2 divided dough blobs onto the sheet pan and shape it with a butter knife. The sticky, craggy top will smooth out with the egg wash.

- Slicing - Take great care when slicing your biscotti with a serrated bread knife into even, uniform cookies. Use a gentle sawing motion, not a chopping motion that will smash the cookies.

- Storage and Gift Giving - Store biscotti in jars or airtight containers at room temperature for up to a month. Great for gift giving paired with a bag of coffee beans or a jar of Homemade Granola!

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