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Dec 2009  |  By Katie Hauser  |  Comments

Cherry Almond Biscotti - A Holiday Cookie Contest Winner

If you can slice a loaf of bread, you can bake biscotti. These crunchy cookies look impressive enough for a present, but they’re really simple to make.

Makes about 4 dozen cookies
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Bake Time: 1 hour

• 1 cup slivered or sliced almonds
• ½ cup unsalted butter, softened (1 stick)
• 1 cup sugar
• 2 eggs
• 2-3 tablespoons grated orange zest
• ¼ teaspoon almond extract
• 2 ¾ cups flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• ½ teaspoon salt
• ¾ cup dried cherries

1. Preheat oven to 325°. In a dry frying pan, lightly toast the almonds. Set aside to cool.

2. Cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, orange rind and almond extract.

3. In a separate bowl, mix the flour, baking powder and salt. Add to the butter mixture and beat just until combined. Stir in the cherries and almonds. The dough will be stiff.

4. On a parchment-lined cookie sheet, form the dough into two flattened logs, each about 12 x 3. Bake about 30 minutes, until lightly browned. Turn the oven down to 300°.

5. Let the logs cool 10 minutes, then slice into ½ inch cookies. Place cookies cut side up on the sheet pan and bake for about 25 minutes. The cookies might not be crispy yet, but they’ll firm up as they cool.