Biscotti.Round 2.

Biscotti goes great with a cup of coffee :)

So a few weeks ago I attempted to make biscotti for the first time...and it completely failed. Long story short, I made the mistake of using frozen strawberries instead of flash frozen strawberries and made a huge gunky mess. I managed to almost salvage it, but it was still by all means a failed recipe. I plan on trying that recipe again soon now that strawberries are coming into season and will be relatively cheap :)

It just so happened that a friends birthday was last week and I was in charge of making dessert for his party.Yay! So along with a delicious cake (besides one near disaster, which I will elaborate on in my next post) I made some almond biscotti, and after making a successful batch this time, I discovered I am a huge biscotti fan :)



 

The dough in "logs"

The dough in "logs"

Those marks in the dough are just hand prints; this dough comes out like a really thick cake batter (or a really thin cookie batter, whichever way you want to look at it) so it was kind of difficult to work with. I had to constantly re-flour my hands while I was shaping them.

Mmmm it looks like fresh baked bread :)

Almond Biscotti-from Smitten Kitchen

3 1/4 cups all purpose flour

1 tablespoon baking powder

1/3 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 cups sugar

10 tablespoons (1 1/4 sticks) unsalted butter, melted

3 large eggs

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

2 tablespoons orange juice

1 cup whole almonds, toasted, coarsely chopped or sliced almonds

1 large egg white

1. Position rack in center of oven and preheat to 350°F. 
2. Line baking sheet with parchment paper. 
3. Sift flour, baking powder and salt into medium bowl. 
4. Mix sugar, melted butter, 3 eggs, vanilla extract, and orange juice in large bowl. 
5. Add flour mixture to egg mixture and stir with wooden spoon until well blended. Mix in almonds.
6. Divide dough in half. Using floured hands, shape each dough half into 13 1/2-inch-long, 2 1/2-inch-wide log. Transfer both logs to prepared baking sheet, spacing apart. Whisk egg white in small bowl until foamy; brush over top and sides of each dough log.
7. Bake logs until golden brown (logs will spread), about 30 minutes.
8. Cool logs completely on sheet on rack, about 25 minutes. Maintain oven temperature.
9. Transfer logs to work surface; discard parchment paper. Using serrated knife, cut logs on diagonal into 1/2-inch-wide slices. Arrange slices, cut side down, on same baking sheet. Bake 12 minutes. Turn biscotti over; bake until just beginning to color, about 8 minutes. 
10. Transfer to rack and cool.

Snickerdoodles x Two

Snickerdoodles are definitely one of the simplest cookies to make, and I would say one of the most satisfying to eat. 

The perfect couple <3

I was surprised at how few people had had them (well most of my co-workers didn't know what they were, at least) and I thought they were one of those staples, like peanut butter cookies or shortbread that most people have heard of. They're one of those cookies that I would want to always keep around the house in case of a craving for something sweet, but not over the top. But what if the cookie alone doesn't satisfy your sweet tooth? What is one thing that a snickerdoodle lacks? 

Frosting.

So why not have both? How about a traditional snickerdoodle, and then lets say...a snickerdoodle cupcake to match? Thank you again Bakerella, for having the perfectly sweet solution. 

Of course you can always just make the snickerdoodles on their own, you know.

As you can see,your hands get pretty messy when you roll them in cinnamon! (Yes, I know, it's a very blurry photo...)

I have to admit,mine came out a little too big for topping the cupcakes, so make them slightly smaller than this if you plan on combining them with the cupcakes.

Snickerdoodles (makes 20) 

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon cream of tartar
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
4 Tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature
1/4 cup shortening
3/4 cup sugar
1 egg
1/4 cup sugar
2 tablespoons cinnamon  

1. Preheat oven to 375.
2. Line baking sheets with parchment paper (I used two sheets,just to make sure they were spaced far enough apart)
3. In a medium bowl, sift together flour, cream of tartar, baking soda and salt. Set aside.
4. In a mixer, cream butter, shortening, and sugar on medium for about 2 minutes.
5. Add egg and mix until combined.
6. Add the flour mixture and beat until combined.
7. In a small bowl, mix sugar and cinnamon.
8. Form balls slightly smaller than a tablespoon. Place in the cinnamon-sugar mixture and roll until covered. When coated, you can shape them in a nice round ball and place on the baking sheet. (reserve any leftover cinnamon sugar to top the cupcakes, if you plan on making them)
9. Bake for about 10 minutes or until the cookies begin to crack. Remove and let cool on a wire rack.

You can also just make the cupcakes by themselves, too. 

Snickerdoodle Cupcakes (makes about 16)

Inspiration found here., again from Bakerella :)

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup sugar
2 eggs, room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla
3/4 cup milk, room temperature

1. Preheat oven to 350.

2. Line cupcake trays with paper liners.

3. In a medium bowl, sift together flour, baking powder and cinnamon. Set aside.

4. In a mixer, cream butter and sugar on medium for about 2 minutes.

5. Add eggs, one at a time and mix until combined.

6. Add vanilla and mix until combined.

7. Add flour mixture to creamed butter and sugar in three additions. Alternate with milk in two additions.

8. Fill baking cups about 3/4 full.

9. Bake for about 15-20 minutes.

Remove cupcakes from trays and let cool.

 

Even the batter looks cinnamon-y and delicious!

You can leave them as-is..or...

You can always pop a cookie on top and add some more frosting, and there you go! The best of both worlds!

 I used the Meringue Buttercream from Martha Stewart, and I usually don't like meringue, but this one was pretty tasty. It's a little on the heavy side, but I needed a frosting thick enough to hold the weight of the cookies on top. 

Meringue Buttercream 

1 1/4 cups sugar

1/3 cup water

5 large egg whites

Pinch cream of tartar

1 pound (4 sticks) unsalted butter, cut into small pieces

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1. In a small saucepan over medium heat, bring sugar and water to a boil. Clip a candy thermometer onto the saucepan. Boil the syrup, brushing down the sides of the pan with a pastry brush dipped in water to prevent crystallization,until the syrup registers 240 degrees.
   
2. Beat egg whites on low speed until foamy. Add cream of tartar, and beat on medium high until stiff but not dry peaks form.
   
3. With the mixer running, pour the sugar syrup down the side of the bowl (to prevent splattering) into the egg whites in a steady stream, and beat on high speed until the steam is no longer visible, about 3 minutes. Beat in butter, piece by piece. Add vanilla; beat until smooth and spreadable, 3 to 5 minutes (I think they underestimate, it took me more like 7 or 8 minutes for this step...be patient!)If it looks curdled at any point during the beating process, continue beating until smooth.
   
   
     
   
   
   
   
   I had a TON of extra frosting left over because my cookies came out a little too big to top the cupcakes so I didn't need the extra dollop on top, so I made Snickerdoodle sandwiches :)