Chocolate Iced Caramel Biscotti

When I was in high school, my friends and family went on this biscotti kick and were constantly asking me to bake them a batch. One time I was making it at a friend’s house and we discovered a little too late that we were out of almond extract (the more traditional flavor). They happened to have caramel extract in their cabinet so we thought, “Why not?” Well it ended up being a hit and has been my go to ever since!

Something that I love about biscotti is that it’s such a yummy treat any time of the day! Whether it’s part of your breakfast, a mid day snack, or an after dinner dessert, you can’t go wrong! And definitely make sure you’re dunking it in your coffee!

I know biscotti can seem a bitty fancy, but I promise it’s easier to make than you might think! It’s a fairly easy dough to make (think cookie dough!) that you’ll spread out onto a baking sheet. Once you bake it and let it cool, you’ll slice it into pieces and pop it into the oven for another round of baking. I know that may seem like a lot of steps, but it goes by pretty quickly!

Making the Dough
The dough for biscotti is quite similar in consistency to that of room temperature cookie dough and even made using the same process (creamy method). At the end of the day you really just want it to be right at that point of holding it’s shape when spread out on a pan.

Forming Your Log
After making your dough, you will need to spread it out on a lined baking sheet. The shape/size you make out of your dough is going to be important when considering your final product’s size. I personally like a long piece of biscotti so I make one log that is about ¾ the length and width of a large baking sheet. If you prefer something smaller, you’ll want to use two baking sheets. Divide the dough between the two sheets and make the log about ¾ the length and 1/3 the width.

Baking Your Biscotti
The word biscotti is derived from a Latin term meaning “twice baked.” It is aptly named because that’s exactly what you are going to do! After baking your shaped logs, you will then slice the log width wise to make individual cookies. At this point they will have a dense cookie consistency so you will bake them a second time to get them nice and crunchy.

Adding the Final Touches
After your second bake, your biscotti is essentially ready to be devoured. But you don’t have to stop there! If you want add an addition flavor and texture to your biscotti you can dip or drizzle them in the chocolate of your choosing.

What you’ll need:
1/2 cup butter, room temp
1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
3 eggs
2 teaspoons caramel extract
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1/2 cups chocolate chips
2 teaspoons coconut oil

What you’ll do:
– Set your oven to 350F.
– Cream together butter and both sugars for several minutes until light and fluffy.
– Add your eggs one at a time, then add in the extract.
– Combine the baking powder, salt, and flour and slowly add to your wet ingredients. Stir until fully incorporated.
– Spread out your dough on a lined baking sheet using a spatula. I like to try and keep mine in the shape of a rectangle. (If you’re having any trouble with this part, sometimes I just use my fingers to make things even.)
– Bake your spread out dough for 20-25 minutes until golden brown in color. Remove from the oven and allow to cool. (You don’t need to wait for it to be room temp, just cool enough that you can easily handle it.)
– Using a serrated knife, slice your baked rectangle into 16 pieces. To make things as even as possible, I like to start by slicing the rectangle in half. I then cut those pieces in half and so on until I get to 16 pieces.
– Lay your pieces cut side down on your baking sheet and bake for 10 minutes. Remove your tray from the oven and carefully flip each piece over to lay on the opposite side. Bake for an additional 10 minutes.
– While your biscotti is cooling, add your chocolate chips and coconut oil to a bowl and microwave for 20 seconds. If it’s not fully melted (it likely won’t be), give it a stir and microwave it for 10 seconds. Repeat this process until it is fully melted.
– Using a butter knife or small spatula, spread the melted chocolate on one side of your biscotti. After each piece has it’s chocolate coating, pop it into your fridge or freezer to help the chocolate set up.
– Enjoy!