Lemon-Almond Biscotti

This has been one crazy month! Spring semester winding down and my youngest daughter graduated college with honors! Some mornings I wake up with energy that I have no idea where it came from and I am on the go till the steam runs out which is usually about dinnertime  Other mornings, not so much energy to face the day of studying, chores, classes, and life.  On most mornings (at the crack of o’dark-thirty), I am trying to ignore  one cat meowing like she’s not been feed or had the attention she thinks she needs her entire life (she’s 19) and the other cat (she’s 3) thinking if she’s biting my feet under the covers that it will make me get up faster to feed her while I try hard to find that energy.

When I need that energy boost, I tend to hit the coffee first thing, after feeding the Belle and Fiona.  I have not always drank coffee.  I didn’t start to enjoy the wonderful elixir until my 30’s, yes you read that correctly.  Total tea kind of girl and I still enjoy my tea more than coffee.  So this morning as I sat down with my coffee, I took a moment to enjoy the silence and to enjoy the aroma of my coffee and this Lemon-Almond Biscotti I made this past weekend.

I have to tell you, that I think this is the best batch of biscotti that I have ever made.  Oh my, the lemon, the almond, and the white chocolate all are so good together.  The lemon sugar tops it off to perfection.  Amazing.  So glad no one else in this house likes this baked good because I am not sharing.  I will share the recipe with you and then you can make the deliciousness yourself.

Lemon-Almond Biscotti

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Ingredients

• 6 tbsp butter
• 2/3 cup granulated sugar
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 tbsp lemon zest zest of one medium-sized lemon
• 1 tsp almond extract
• 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 3 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 2 large eggs
• 2 cups flour
• For the Glaze:
• 6 ounces of white chocolate
• 1 lemon zested
• 2 tbsp granulated sugar

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
• In a medium bowl, mix the sugar and lemon zest with a fork to coat the sugar. I find this helps to distribute the zest better in the batter and will not clog your beaters.
• Add the butter to the lemon sugar and cream together.
• Add the salt, almond extract, and baking powder and mix until smooth and creamy.
• Beat in the lemon juice and eggs; the batter may look slightly curdled - this is fine.
• At low speed of your mixer, add the flour, stirring until smooth; the dough will be sticky.
• Place the dough onto the prepared baking sheet. Shape it into a log that’s about 13" long x 3" wide x 3⁄4" thick.
• Straighten the log, and smooth its top and sides; a slightly wet spatula or slightly wet fingertips work well here.
• Bake the dough for 25 minutes. Remove it from the oven, and allow it to cool on the pan anywhere from 15 minutes.
• Reduce the oven heat to 325°F.
• I recently learned this great tip for cutting biscotti: use a spray bottle filled with room-temperature water and lightly but thoroughly spritz the log, making sure to cover the sides as well as the top. Softening the crust just this little bit will make slicing the biscotti much easier. DON'T make it soggy!!
• Wait another 5 minutes, then use a serrated knife to cut the log crosswise into 1⁄2" slices.
• Set the biscotti on edge on the prepared baking sheet. Return the biscotti to the oven, and bake them for 30 to 35 minutes, till they feel very dry and are beginning to turn golden around the edges.
• Remove the biscotti from the oven, and transfer them to a rack to coo; completely.
• To glaze: Melt the white chocolate in the microwave in 15 second intervals until melted and smooth. Mix the zest of one lemon and 2 tbsp sugar until the sugar is coated with lemon zest. Drizzle melted white chocolate over cooled biscotti and immediately sprinkle the lemon sugar over the white chocolate. Let set till chocolate is hardened and then store in an airtight container.
• Inspired by King Arthur Flour