Sicilian Orange Nut Biscotti Recipes

NUTTY ORANGE BISCOTTI

Steps:

• In a large bowl, beat the eggs and sugar together at high speed with an electric mixer until foamy, about 5 minutes. Add the orange zest and juice, oil, almond extract and vanilla extract, beating until blended. Sift the flour and baking powder together and add to the egg mixture, beating well. Fold in the almonds by hand. Remove the dough to plastic wrap, wrap and freeze until firm, about 30 minutes.
• Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Spray a baking sheet with nonstick cooking spray. Divide the dough in half. Spray your hands lightly with nonstick cooking spray and shape each portion into a 5-by-8-inch log on the baking sheet. Bake until firm, about 25 minutes. Cool the logs on the baking sheet for 5 minutes, then transfer to wire racks to cool completely, about 15 minutes.
• Using a serrated knife, cut each log diagonally into 1/2-inch slices. Return the biscotti to the baking sheets and bake for 15 minutes. Turn the cookies over and bake for 15 more minutes. Cool on wire racks.

ITALIAN BISCOTTI

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F ( 165 degrees C ).
• In a large bowl, cream the butter and sugar together. Add eggs one at a time; beat until fluffy. Stir in the anise and vanilla extracts. Sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt; Add them to the egg mixture along with the chopped almonds. Stir with a spoon and as the dough comes together, Knead by hand.
• Divide the dough into 4 parts. Roll each piece into a log about 15 inches long. Place logs onto cookie sheets, 2 to a sheet, the long way. Flatten the logs out until they are about 3 inches wide with a slight hump going down the middle. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes in the preheated oven, loaves should be firm. Cut the loaves into diagonal slices 1/2 inch wide, place the slices onto the cookie sheets and return to the oven. Toast on one side, then turn them over to do the other side. This will take about 7 to 10 minutes.

ORANGE AND BASIL BISCOTTI

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a large rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.
• Combine the sugar and butter in the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with a paddle. Cream the mixture until pale and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, making sure to mix well before each addition. Add the orange zest and basil and blend on low speed, about 30 seconds.
• Combine the flour, baking powder and salt in a separate bowl. Add the flour mixture to the standing mixer and beat until combined. Fold in the almonds.
• Transfer the dough to a lightly floured surface. Divide the dough in half. Using floured hands, shape the dough into logs. Brush off the excess flour. Place the logs on the baking sheet, spaced 5 inches apart.
• Flatten each log into a 2-inch-wide strip. Bake the logs, rotating the baking sheet halfway through, until browned and set, about 30 minutes. Transfer the logs to a cooling rack and cool, about 15 minutes.
• Reduce the oven to 300 degrees F.
• Transfer the logs to a work surface. Cut each log diagonally into 1/3-inch-thick slices using a serrated knife. Arrange the slices, cut-side down, on the baking sheet. Bake the slices, rotating the baking sheet halfway through, until crisp, about 20 minutes. Transfer the slices to the cooling racks and let cool.
• The biscotti can be made 3 days ahead and stored in an airtight container at room temperature.

SICILIAN ORANGE-NUT BISCOTTI

Steps:

• In a mixing bowl, combine 1-1/4 c. flour, 1/2 c. sugar, 1/2 t. baking soda and a pinch of salt. In a smaller bowl, whisk together 2 medium eggs, 2 T. orange peel (or 1/2 t. orange oil), 1/2 t real vanilla and 1/2 t. anise seed. Stir this mixture into dry ingredients. Add 1 c. toasted, chopped hazelnuts and mix well. Divide dough in halves or thirds. Shape into logs on a well-floured surface. Transfer to a baking sheet that is lined with parchment or sprayed with Pam. Bake in a 300 deg. preheated oven for 20 minutes. Logs should be firm and very lightly browned. Cool at least 5 minutes, cut into 3/4" diagonal slices and return to oven, baking an additional 15 minutes. Cool on rack.

NUTTY ORANGE BISCOTTI

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 325°F.
• In a large bowl, beat the eggs and sugar together at high speed with an electric mixer for 5 minutes, or until foamy. Add the orange zest, oil, vanilla, orange juice, and almond extract, beating until blended. Sift the flour and baking powder together and add to the sugar mixture, beating well. Fold in the almonds by hand. Cover the dough in the mixing bowl and place in the freezer for 30 minutes or in the refrigerator 2 hours until firm.
• Divide the dough in half. Shape each portion into a 5 × 8-inch log on a lightly greased baking sheet. Bake for 25 minutes or until firm. Cool the dough logs on the baking sheet for 5 minutes, then transfer to wire racks to cool completely.
• Using a serrated knife, cut each log diagonally into 1/2-inch slices. Return the biscotti to the greased baking sheets and bake for 15 minutes. Turn the cookies over and bake for 15 more minutes. Cool on wire racks.
• From Trisha
• I usually leave the fancy recipes to my sister, and this is one of hers, but it's easy to make. They look so fancy on the plate, and sound so cool, though, that people will think you worked really hard to make them.

ORANGE AND CINNAMON BISCOTTI

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325° and butter 2 baking sheets.
• Beat sugar and butter. Add eggs 1 at a time, beating well.
• Add orange peel and vanilla; beat.
• Add dry ingredients to butter mixture, mixing until just incorporated.
• Divide dough into 2 parts.
• Form into logs and flatten to 1 1/2-inch thick with lightly-floured hands on baking sheets.
• Bake until firm, about 30 to 35 minutes. Cool 15 minutes.
• Using serrated knife, cut into 1/2-inch slices. Return to the oven and bake on both sides until golden (about another 8 minutes per side). Cool.

SICILIAN NUT ROLLS

Steps:

• 1 In a large bowl, combine the flour, sugar, and salt. Cut in the shortening and butter until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. 2 In a small bowl, whisk the eggs with two tablespoons of the milk. Add the mixture to the dry ingredients, stirring until the dough is evenly moistened. If needed, blend in a little more milk. 3 Gather the dough into a ball and place it on a sheet of plastic wrap. Flatten it into a disk and wrap well. Refrigerate 1 hour up to overnight. 4 Process the nuts and sugar in a food processor. Process until fine. Add the honey, zest, and cinnamon, and process until blended. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease 2 large baking sheets. 5 Divide the dough into 4 pieces. Roll out one piece between two sheets of plastic wrap to form a square slightly larger than 8 inches. Trim the edges and cut the dough into 2-inch squares. Place a heaping teaspoon of the filling along one side of each square. Roll up the dough to enclose the filling completely. Place seam-side down on the baking pan. Repeat with the remaining dough and filling, placing the cookies 1 inch apart. 6 Bake 18 minutes or until the cookies are lightly browned. Transfer the cookies to wire racks to cool. Store in a tightly sealed container up to 2 weeks. Sprinkle with confectioner's sugar before serving. From "1,000 Italian Recipes." Copyright 2004 by Michele Scicolone. Used with permission of the publisher, Wiley Publishing, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

ORANGE BISCOTTI

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to gas 3/160°C/325°F.
• Grease a baking sheet.
• Beat together the butter and sugar until smooth. Beat int the egg, then the orange rind, juice, flour, baking powder, cinnamon and polenta.
• Tip the mixture on to a lightly floured surface and knead. Place dough on the baking sheet and flatten with the palm of your hand to make a rectangle approx 25 x 18 cm.
• Bake for 25 minutes, then remove from the oven and leave to stand for 5 mins until slightly cooled. Using a sharp knife, carefully cut the mixture widthways into thin sticks about 1 cm wide.
• Space the cookies out slightly on the baking sheet, then bake for a further 20 minutes until crisp.
• When cool, dust with icing sugar.