Happy holidays! I hope everyone is having a relaxing holiday and getting some quality cooking and baking time in. K and I had a strategic blog meeting earlier this month and we opted not to do our annual 12 Days of Christmas Cookies this year. December is always such a busy month and we decided we would be able to enjoy our Christmas prep without all the self-imposed deadlines. If you are still looking for some holiday baking inspiration, we have our archive of cookie recipes saved under the Christmas Cookies tag.
While we were together this year for Christmas at my parent’s home, K and I decided to make some Gingerbread Biscotti. We knew it would be perfect holiday treat to go with our morning coffee. We even used International Delight Gingerbread Latte creamer with our coffee to help meet our official holiday gingerbread quota! (Be sure to check out the the International Delight Member Delights’ program for coupons and giveaways.)
Our mom had found us this recipe for Gingerbread Biscotti and we had a lot of fun one afternoon baking together during T & N’s nap time one day. We don’t often get an opportunity to make stuff together since we live on opposite sides of the country. It’s also always a fun time writing up a blog post together- I do most of the writing and K focuses on the food styling and photography.
- 2 cups, plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour, plus extra for flouring hands
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 2 teaspoons ground ginger
- ⅛ teaspoon ground cloves
- A few grates of nutmeg (or a pinch of ground nutmeg)
- A pinch of black pepper
- ½ teaspoon coarse sea salt
- ½ cup dark brown sugar
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 7 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled
- 2 large eggs
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 large egg white
- ⅓ cup granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Line one large baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, spices, pepper and salt. In a separate medium bowl, whisk together the dark brown sugar, the granulated sugar, butter, eggs, and vanilla. Add the sugar and butter ingredients to the flour and spice mixture and stir to combine.
- Separate dough into two balls. Transfer first ball to the prepared baking sheet and form it into a slightly flattened log (approximately 11 inches by 2½ inches.) Repeat with second half of dough on the other side of the baking sheet. Meanwhile, whisk egg white in a small bowl until foamy. Brush the egg white over each log.
- Bake biscotti for 25 minutes or until it turns golden brown. Remove from oven and let cool on the baking sheet. Once the biscotti has cooled down, move each log to a cutting board. Use a serrated knife to cut the log on the diagonal into approximately ½” slices.
- Arrange slices (keeping a cut side down) on baking sheet. Bake for another 10 to 12 minutes. Turn each biscotti over and bake for another 6 to 8 minutes, until lightly golden all over. Transfer biscotti to a cooling rack.
Source: Slightly adapted from Smitten Kitchen
Enjoy your last few days of 2014 and happy new year 2015!
This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of International Delight. The opinions and text are all mine.