Lemon Cranberry Pecan Biscotti

Yeah, I had a major biscotti phase...and I still do!

Well, I did a lot of searching around in cookbooks and online for a recipe that I liked. Took a while and I looked for similarities in the recipes. I learned a few things though, which is always really good. So there are three kinds of biscotti base dough substance recipes: whole eggs only, egg and butter, or egg white only.

I happened to have my American's Test Kitchen book on hand and one major difference would be texture and the other is taste. Hard, light, with a pleasant snap and crunch (but not hard enough to break a tooth...unless you're careless) and has a flavor that improves with time after baking; lasts longer than the ones made with butter. Softer and more fragrant aroma with a nice cruch not as prominent as the whole egg one though; loses flavor over time. Break a tooth hard...forgot what it said about flavor though, but I imagine that it wouldn't be as strong as the other two.

In the end, I opted to make the ones that called for whole eggs. Reasons? I'm a busy college student that doesn't want anything to go rancid over time, hehe. I'm not a major fan of butter either and I don't like the residue it leaves on the fingers and lips.

I actually made two by the book recipe biscottis to test out how to make biscottis, and it took a while but I think I got the hang of it by the 3rd or 4th time I tried it. I made an orange honey, a chocolate pistachio, and pecan cranberry; I know, thats three. What did I learn? 1. Ones without any filling are harder to handle and shape and probably cook faster, 2. chocolate pieces don't improve the texture of a whole egg biscotti because it interferes with the crunch factor, 3. pecans, cranberries, and lemon are the best combo of ingredients I have ever tasted. Note: anytime I mention a citrus fruit, I'm refering to the zest of it. Most recipes called for some kind of zest, either lemon or orange.

Result of all this experimentation? Developing a really great Lemon Pecan Cranberry biscotti with a nice bite and flavor that grows over the couple days after you make them. They are great with a beverage because the hardness stands up to soaking, and may be better for those who don't like such hard cookies.

Lemon Scented Cranberry Pecan Biscotti

• 2 1/2 cups of unbleached all purpose flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp of salt
• 1 cup dried cranberries (Craisens are good)
• 1 cup of chopped and toasted pecans
• 3 large eggs
• 2/3 cups granulated sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• Zest of 1 medium lemon (or large if you really want)

1. Preheat oven to 350 F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment and set aside (second one is for later).

2. Combine flour, baking powder, and salt in a bowl. Set aside.

3. Beat eggs with whisk in a mixter, or by hand, until relatively broken down. Add granulated sugar and beat until combined and just dissolved. Add zest and vanilla extract and mix again until everything is well combined.

4. Remove bowl from mixer. Add flour mixture in third portions. Mix each third portion into wet mixture until semi-combined and then add the next. When last third of dry mixture in almost combined add cranberries and pecans. Stir until just well combined.

5. Devide the batter in two and shape each portion into 12"x2" logs. Wetting your hands slightly makes this easier because the batter is a little sticky.

6. Place in oven on middle rack and bake for 20~25 minutes, or until pale golden and cracked on top. Rotate baking sheet halfway through baking time for even browning.

7. Turn oven down to 275 F. Remove and cool on sheets for 5 minutes, then remove and cool for another 10 or 15 minutes. The longer it is cooled the easier it will be to slice without messing up the center too much. Use a serrated knife or bread knife and cut at an angle 1/4" slices. Lay the slices flat on parchmented baking sheets and return to oven on upper 1/3rd and lower 1/3rd of oven to bake for 15 minutes. After this, remove and turn the slices over to toast the other side. Return to oven for 15 more minutes or until biscotti is dry. The color should still be pale or the color they looked when they were first sliced. The idea is to dry them out, not brown.

8. Cool on cooling rack and make sure it is completely cooled before putting them into a container or packaging of any kind. From what I understand, they last a few weeks in an airtight container, if they last that long.