Christmas Fruitcake Biscotti
Christmas Fruitcake Biscotti will change your mind about fruitcake. This biscotti is twice baked, crisp with a tender bite, filled with candied fruit pieces, and a hint of almond flavor. It’s perfect for dunking in coffee or tea and great to give as gifts.
Servings: 24 cookies
Equipment
- stand mixer or electric handheld mixer with large bowl
- medium bowl
- baking sheet lined with parchment paper
- Spatula or wooden spoon
- measuring cups and spoons
- sharp serrated knife
Ingredients
- ½ cup unsalted butter, softened
- ½ cup granualated sugar
- ¼ cup light brown sugar, packed
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 2 eggs
- 1 teaspoon almond pasted extract or 1 teaspoon almond extract
- 2 cups flour
- 1½ teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
- ¼ teaspoon ground ginger
- ½ - ¾ cup chopped mixed candied fruit
- white chocolate chips for melting and drizzling
- holiday sprinkles
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Set aside.
- In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients: flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and ginger. Set aside.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat together the butter and both sugars until light and fluffy. This may take about 3 – 4 minutes. Scrap the sides of the bowl if needed, and then add the eggs and almond extract. Mix until combined. (*You can also use a large mixing bowl and a handheld electric mixer.)
- Gradually add in the flour mixture to the wet ingredients, mixing after each addition. The dough will be sticky.
- Using a spatula or wooden spoon mix in the candied fruit. *TIP: In a small bowl add the candied fruit and a very small amount of flour (I used a scant teaspoon full). Mix together so that the candied fruit is coated. This will help the fruit to not stick together in the dough
- Lightly flour your hands, remove the dough from the bowl, and place on the prepared pan. Shape into a 12-inch by 4-inch log. It doesn’t have to be exact.
- Bake in preheated oven (350 degrees) for 25 – 30 minutes. Remove from oven, and allow the log to cool for 30 minutes. This is important – allowing the log to cool will aid in slicing smooth cookies and it won’t fall apart. **Reduce oven temperature to 300 degrees for the second bake.** Once it’s cooled, transfer it to a cutting board and use a serrated knife to cut the log into ¾ inch thick slices. Place slices back on the baking sheet cut side up.
- Return pan to the oven to bake a second time for 20 minutes, turning the biscotti over halfway through baking time. Remove from oven and let cool on a wire rack.
- Once the fruitcake biscotti is cooled, melt the white chocolate chips in the microwave. Drizzle the white chocolate over the biscotti and then add festive sprinkles.
Notes
Recipe adapted from Taste of the South Magazine