Cinnamon Vanilla Biscotti

This Cinnamon & vanilla biscotti recipe is packed with cinnamon flavor, vanilla richness and has a light and buttery crunch but softer center. This is an easy cookie recipe and makes a great sidekick to a cappuccino!

Making biscotti is very near and dear to me. It was one of the first cookies I made on my own! Once I mastered my recipe, I began making them all the time. They are still my favorite cookie to make for two reasons:

1. Biscotti are the easiest cookies to make. Once the dough comes together you form it into a log, bake and then slice. Since you don’t have to scoop out dough into individual cookies, you can whip up a batch of biscotti FAST. 
2. Once you master making basic biscotti, you can get creative with flavors and add-ins. You guys know how much I love adding my own twist on things, and biscotti is so versitile! Don’t like nuts? Make biscotti without nuts! Add in spices, chocolate chips, dried fruit, extracts…It’s so great being able to throw in whatever you have in your pantry.

Bonus reason: Biscotti are never too sweet, which make them good for snacking all times of day.

…oh wait! Also, Biscotti are a one bowl recipe. And you only need one cookie tray. 

If you read my post for Lemon Biscotti, you know that I’m not a fan of rock hard, break your teeth cookies, which is how most store-bought biscotti is. In my opinion, biscotti is too hard! I might be nontraditional on this matter, but that’s the way I’ve always felt about it.  This recipe gives you a beautiful light crunch but softer center. It’s still dunk-able without falling apart, I promise!

Biscotti are the perfect make-ahead cookie

Did you know, that biscotti originated in Italy for the purpose of having a long shelf life? Because the cookie is baked twice and very dry, they lasted a long time and became a staple for travelling long distances (those Romans were all over the place!). For us in our modern world, we don’t necessarily have to make them so dry for the purpose of storage.

Can you freeze biscotti? YES! I do it all the time; they hold up great. Once you’re finished baking them off, place them in a heavy duty freezer bag and they can be frozen for up to 3 months.

How to Make Biscotti

Like I said, making homemade biscotti is super easy. I love the homemade look of these cookies. You can make them big, make them small, they’re always beautiful!

Here are the essential steps:

1. 1. Mix the dough and form in big fat log.Begin to shape the dough and carefully stretch it longer and thinner. I usually stretch it the whole length of the tray. I recommend cutting the dough into two smaller logs at this point. It’s usually easier to fit on the tray. Then, flatten down both sections of dough to about 1/2 inch thickness.
      
   2. After you’ve pushed the dough down flat, go along the edges and use your hands to straighten up the edges.Bake it off until golden brown on the edges; the center should also be on the firm side. That’s how you know it’s done. (I cant tell you how good this cinnamon vanilla biscotti smelled while baking!)Allow to cool for about 10 minutes; using a serrated knife, slice into diagonal pieces (about 1 inch in width each, I usually make them a bit thicker than that though!)
      As you can see from the photo below, the bottom edge should be a light golden brown. The inside should still be fluffy, soft and cakey.Lay the pieces on the tray with the side facing up, throw them back in the oven for a quick bake. Now, the second bake is where the crispity crunch of biscotti happens. I have found that dropping the temperature and baking each side for 10 minutes gives me the perfect texture (the whole cookie is firm, has crisp edges but the center is still on the softer side). If you prefer a crunchier cookie, absolutely feel free to bake them for longer!!

Let’s quick talk about this Cinnamon Vanilla Biscotti version

Like I mentioned earlier, biscotti is so wonderful because you can let your flavor-imagination run wild. When I was thinking about what flavor to make, I chose Cinnamon Vanilla because I wanted to make sure you guys had a reliable recipe for serving with coffee & tea. The punch of cinnamon pairs perfectly with coffee, black tea & earl grey. The extra dose of vanilla makes these sweet without adding more sugar.

This cookie is packed with a ton of cinnamon and extra vanilla extract that gives it a very creamy flavor. It actually reminds me of streusel, cinnamon roll or coffee cake. The warmth of the cinnamon and smooth drizzle of glaze is absolutely fabulous. I really enjoyed having this with my morning coffee! I hope you love this recipe!

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Cinnamon Vanilla Biscotti

Ingredients

For the Biscotti

• 1 stick butter room temp
• 3/4 c granulated sugar
• 3 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 eggs
• 1 3/4 c + 2tbps all purpose flour plus more for shaping the dough
• 3/4 tsp salt
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon

For the Glaze

• 1 c powdered sugar
• 3 tsp hot water more/less to achieve a drizzle consistency
• dash ground cinnamon

Instructions

For the Biscotti

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Prep one cookie tray with parchment.

2. In a medium bowl, combine the butter and sugar. Mix until light and fluffy. Add the vanilla extract and mix until fully incorporated.

3. Add the eggs and mix well for about 1 minute.

4. Add the flour, salt and baking powder. Gently fold in the dry ingredients.

5. Once the dough comes together, add the cinnamon, gently mix. I like to add this in the end to see swirls of the spice throughout the dough.

6. Sprinkle a couple of tablespoons of flour onto the cookie tray that is lined with parchment. Carefully dump out the bowl onto the tray and gently form the dough into a log. The dough will be slightly sticky and soft, so add more flour as needed to form the shape.

7. Stretch the dough lengthwise until it is as long as the cookie sheet (about 13 inches). Cut in half and place the two sections of dough next to each other. Press each log down so that the dough is about 1/2 inch thick.

8. Using your hand, gently shape the edges so that they are straight.  

9. Bake for about 30min until light golden brown & firm. 

10. Once finished baking, allow to cool for 5-10 minutes on the tray.

11. Drop the oven temp to 280°F.

12. Place one log at a time on a cutting board. Using a serrated knife, slice the log into cookies on a diagonal into thick slices. Place the cookies on their sides and place back into the oven for 10 minutes. 

13. After the cookies are done baking on the one side, flip them over again and bake the other sides for 10 minutes. (I found that baking for even more time, 20min on each side, results in a cookie that is very crisp, if you prefer that then you can bake them for longer). 

14. After the last bake, allow to cool on the tray.

For the Glaze

1. In a small bowl, combine the glaze ingredients and mix until thick, but still a smooth-drizzle consistency. Drizzle the glaze over the tops of the biscotti using a fork or place in a sandwich bag with the tip cut for more control. 

Recipe Notes

Biscotti can be frozen for up to 3 months. 

 

Recipe by Owlbbaking.com