Chocolate almond biscotti

I don't think there is a "time of year" for biscotti, but this was another cookie ordered for a Christmas/birthday party. Of course, I'm happy to oblige.

I like how unique it is to make biscotti. It's not often that things need to be baked twice (possibly with the exception of tuiles).

Biscotti, also known as cantuccuni, are "twice baked" Italian biscuits, as derived from it's Latin root word biscoctus. These cookies have a long and rich history, as Pliny the Elder boasted their shelflife as centuries long.

Mostly, biscotti is seen in coffee shops, where dunking it into your steaming cup o' jo will soften it up to be perfect to bite into. The reason being, is the twice baked process dries them out to the point where you wouldn't want to regular munch on these without some coffee on hand.

Stripped to the core, a basic biscotti recipe is as follows:

• 2 eggs
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 cup flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/4 cup butter*

* Depending on your variation of mix ins, this may be left out.

With a chocolate almond variation, butter is not necessary. Don't ask me why, I don't know the exact chemistry behind these wicked cookies, but David Lebovitz doesn't either, so I'm going to go with that.

Chocolate Almond Biscotti

1 egg
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/8 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp almond extract
1 cup unbleached flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/8 tsp salt
1/4 cup whole almonds
1/3 cup chocolate chips 

1. Beat egg and sugar until fluffy, approximately 2 minutes. Add the extracts and beat until combined.
2. Fold in the flour, baking powder, and salt until just combined. Toss in almond and chocolate chips.
3. Form the dough into 2 flap-top logs, at a consistent width of 5 cm.
4. Bake on parchment or silpat lined cookie sheets at 350F for 25 minutes.
5. Remove from oven and cool for 5 minutes.
6. Slice into thin sections approximately 2 cm thick, return to cookie sheets on their sides, and bake another 10 minutes. Turn cookies over to their other exposed side halfway through.