I started making these biscotti for the holidays a few years back. They’ve (so far) been the one constant Christmas treat I make each year. This is partly because (a) they’re festive and delicious, and (b) they keep extremely well. I normally make them at least a week in advance of sharing them before the hectic holiday season. They’ll keep stored in an airtight container (or holiday tin!) at room temperature for at least three weeks. The recipe is adaptable if you wanted to play with flavours and do a non-seasonal variety – just alter your spices! I love serving these with a cappuccino or hot chocolate for dipping.

Something else I learned while working on this post is that “biscotti” is the plural word for “biscotto”. Apparently I’ve been saying this wrong my whole life! 

Gingerbread Biscotti

Recipe adapted from Smitten Kitchen

Yield: About 32-36 slices of biscotti

Notes:

Leave yourself ample time for this recipe. Biscotti are double-baked – once in log form and again once sliced. Between baking you will also need to allow time for the biscotti to cool. Deb from Smitten Kitchen says about 1.5 hours, so budget about 1.5 to 2 if you’re like me!

Ingredients:

Dry

• 2 cups plus 2 Tbsp all-purpose flour
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 2 tsp ground ginger
• 1 ½ tsp ground cardamom
• ½ tsp ground nutmeg
• ¼ tsp ground black pepper
• ⅛ tsp ground cloves
• ½ teaspoon sea salt

Wet

• ½ cup brown sugar
• ½ cup granulated sugar
• 7 Tbsp unsalted butter, melted and cooled (according to this site, which is my go-to butter converter, that’s roughly .44 cups of butter)
• 1 Tbsp molasses (optional – recommended if you’re going for the gingerbread flavour!)
• 2 large eggs
• 2 tsp (10 ml) vanilla extract
• 1 ⅓ cups toasted and chopped nuts or chocolate chips (optional – I’ve never added this)

Egg Wash:

• 1 egg white

Topping (optional):

• ⅓ cup granulated sugar
• 1 Tbsp ground cinnamon

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350°F.
2. Line one large baking sheet (mine are 12×16”) or two standard baking sheets (mine are 10×15”) with parchment paper.
3. In a large bowl, sift or whisk together all of the dry ingredients.
4. In a medium bowl, whisk together all of the wet ingredients. If using nuts or chocolate chips, wait until the end of the next step to add them.
5. Pour the combined wet ingredients into the large bowl of dry ingredients and stir just to combine. Stir in the nuts or chocolate chips, if using, at this step.
6. Divide the dough into two equal parts. For this part, I like gathering it into one ball and cutting it with a dough cutter/scraper. A regular knife will work just as well.
7. Lightly flour your hands and shape each dough half into equal-sized, semi-flattened logs, roughly 2 ½” wide and about 12” or one foot long. Place onto prepared baking sheets(s).
8. Whisk egg white for about a minute in a small bowl. It should be light and a bit foamy.
9. Brush whisked egg white over the logs – be sure to get the sides as well as the top!
10. Bake in preheated oven for about 25 minutes – they should be golden brown all over. If not, check again in another minute or two until golden brown.
11. While logs are baking, prepare your cinnamon sugar topping (if using). Simply whisk together cinnamon and sugar in shallow, wide bowl.
12. Remove biscotti logs from oven place baking sheet(s) on cooling rack until each log is only slightly warm to touch, about 30 minutes.
13. Carefully transfer logs to a cutting board. Using a serrated knife, slice each log diagonally into roughly ½” slices.
14. Coat both sides of each slice in cinnamon sugar, lightly shaking to dust off any excess.
15. Arrange slices on baking sheet, lined with parchment (you should be able to re-use the one you’ve already prepared).
16. Bake slices at 350°F for about 12 minutes or until the bottoms are light golden brown.
17. Flip each slice over and bake again for another 8-10 minutes, until the bottoms are light golden brown.
18. Transfer biscotti from pan to rack and cool completely.
19. Biscotti will keep in an airtight container at room temperature for at least three weeks.
20. Enjoy with your favourite warm beverage (perhaps Bailey’s and ho cho?) or alone!

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