cinnamon sugar biscotti

i don't dunk oreos. or chocolate chip. or any other cookie. i hate tiramisu. and i don't even want to think about an open faced sandwich. why? all that sog. ick. there's nothing worse than biting into a wet, mushy cookie/bread/cake. i was one of those kids at birthday parties that never had ice cream with my cake for fear that the ice cream would melt into a puddle and destroy the cake by touching it. gross.

there's only one food i'll even think about dunking: biscotti. and i only dunk in coffee. and together, it's the best breakfast ever.

so what i saw this recipe posted on joy the baker combining biscotti with cinnamon - also the perfect mate for coffee - i knew i had to try it.

and it was almost perfect. i saw almost, because i'm a biscotti snob. i know. i like mine to be crunchy and dry on the outside, but still a little cookie-like and moist in the middle. so if you ate them without dunking in coffee - which jason always does since he hates coffee - they're crunchy but not so hard you feel like you're going to break your teeth. that's how i like them. and these were a little dry for me. i'll have to try them again another time and decrease the baking time a bit. or i might try adapting my other go to pistachio biscotti recipe (which i've also adapted for almond and it works perfectly).



since i'm such a biscotti snob, i made a couple changes to joy's recipe:

• i like my biscotti long and about 1/2 thick slices, so when i shaped my loaves, i made them wide. the loaves don't spread out much, so form them into the size you want them. mine were about 9" long and 6" wide. yes, i measure them to make sure the two are about the same size so they cook in the same amount of time.
  
• joy baked her loaves on two separate sheets on two racks in the oven. i didn't bother - i put both side by side on one sheet pan and rotated it half way through.
• during the second bake, i flipped them half way through, so both sides were up at some point. and her second bake is too long - i did three minutes, flipped, and three minutes more. a fill 10-15 would really dry them out, which is fine if you like them super duper crunchy.

why the second bake? the first bake cooks the biscotti, the second dries them out to add the crunch factor. without the second bake, they're simply finger shaped cookies. which would also be good, if you don't like them so dry.



cinnamon sugar biscotti
adapted from joy the baker's cinnamon sugar biscotti

mine made 24 1/2" wide cookies in 75 minutes

2 cups flour
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup granulated sugar
6 tablespoons butter, at room temperature
1 egg + 1 yolk
1 teaspoon vanilla

for the topping:
1/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 egg beaten with 1 tablespoon water

1. preheat oven to 325. line one baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. beat in the egg and yolk. mix in the vanilla.
3. in a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, cinnamon, baking powder, and salt.
4. add the dry ingredients to the creamed butter all at once. mix until a stiff dough is formed.
5. divide the dough in half and shape into roughly equally sized logs. make them long and skinny if you want short, stubby biscotti or make them shorter and wider if you want longer biscotti.
6. transfer to the baking sheet. brush the top with the beaten egg & water mixture. in a small bowl, mix together the sugar and cinnamon for the topping. sprinkle over the egg coated loaves.
7. bake for ~45 minutes until golden brown, rotating the sheet halfway through.
8. remove from the oven - keep the oven on - and let cool on the sheet about 10 minutes. use a spatula and move the loaves to a cooling rack, until able to handle, about 10 minutes.
9. use a serrated knife - my bread knife works best - and cut into slices the size you wish. put the slices cut side down on the baking sheet.
10. sprinkle with more of the cinnamon sugar mixture and bake about 3 minutes. flip the biscotti, sprinkle with more of the cinnamon sugar mixture and bake an additional 3 minutes. cool on a cooking rack. store in an airtight container for up to a week.