Reviewed: Jun. 2, 2003

I am not a big fan of biscotti, but I am trying to find a nice dessert with a longer shelf life (for gifts) and also something tasty to sell during the holidays. This is my first attempt at making biscotti & I was a little intimidated. I am happy to say that making biscotti is so EASY! I followed the directions of the recipe except I didn't have orange zest. Instead, I added 1-2 tablespoons of Grand Marnier. The biscotti was a HUGE hit. I tested it at a party & everyone thought I should sell it to Starbucks---so much fresher and tastier! After mixing the dough, I let it sit in the mixing bowl for 10-12 minutes so that it could set up. It made it easier to handle (wet hands helped with the stickiness). Also, I baked the biscotti dough on Silpat sheets and had no problems with sticking. I used a serrated knife & had no problems slicing the biscotti. Also, I added a few extra minutes to the second baking because I like a drier biscotti. I can't wait to experiment with more biscotti recipes!!

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103 users found this review helpful

Reviewer:

TLBRAN

Reviewed: Dec. 26, 2002

MORE THAN TWO YEARS AGO WAS WHEN I GAVE THIS RECIPE A FIVE-STAR RATING.....AND I JUST WANT TO CONFIRM THAT THIS IS ONE OF THE BEST BISCOTTI RECIPES, IF NOT THE BEST, YOU WILL EVER FIND. AFTER GIVING IT AS GIFTS THAT FIRST CHRISTMAS, EVERYONE IS MY FAMILY WANTS IT FOR A GIFT...WORD GOT AROUND QUICKLY IN OUR FAMILY ABOUT IT, AND SO A CHRISTMAS DOES NOT PASS WITHOUT IT....SOMETIMES, I GIVE IT AS GIFTS, FOR "JUST BECAUSE". IT TRULY IS A GREAT RECIPE.

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77 users found this review helpful

Reviewer:

KRAUSMAN

Reviewed: Jan. 4, 2003

These were fantastic! Thanks,Thea. Spreading the chocolate on each cookie was a bit time-consuming, so on my subsequent batches, I laid out all the cooled cookeies, cut side up, on the baking sheet. I put the slightly cooled melted chocolate in a cake decorating bag with a plain tip and "squiggled" it over the cookies. It was fast, looked great and there was just enough chocolate on each cookie to enhance the orange flavor without overpowering it.

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70 users found this review helpful

Reviewer:

DesertBorn54

Cooking Level: Intermediate

Home Town: Phoenix, Arizona, USA

Living In: Anaheim, California, USA

Reviewed: May 27, 2005

YUM! I tried to follow the recipe to the letter but I didn't have any oranges. I used 1/2 tsp. orange extract instead. Delicious! Also, after baking, I layed the pieces right next to each other on a wire rack. Then, I melted the chocolate chips in a ziplock bag, snipped off a very small corner and drizzled the chocolate in patterns over all. Much easier, fancy looking and less cleanup. I will definitely be giving these as Christmas gifts this year.

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36 users found this review helpful

Reviewer:

NOCUPPAJO

Reviewed: Dec. 12, 2002

Excellent recipe! Found that the cookies cut much better with a sharp butcher's knife. The nuts kept sticking to my serated knives (and I tried several) which caused the cookie to break. The sharp butcher's knife cut them easily and cleanly making a much nicer looking cookie. Taste is great, Too!

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23 users found this review helpful

Reviewer:

R. B. Miller

Living In: Fredericksburg, Virginia, USA

Reviewed: May 23, 2007

This is a great recipe. I have been looking for a good one for a while and I'm so glad I found this one. I didn't have almond extract and I don't care for nutmeg, so I left them out. I also didn't read the recipe really well and added the choc. chips to the batter. Yummy! (I didn't dip them later) Not crazy about orange zest, but it really adds flavor. Don't leave it out - unless of course you are adapting it to a lemon poppy seed biscotti or something like that. The possiblilities are endless! I also only made one large loaf and because I like a real crisp biscotti I turned down the oven to 200 degrees and just let them hang out for about 30 extra minutes at the end. Turned off the oven and let them cool there. Didn't get any darker at 200 either. YUM!

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22 users found this review helpful

Reviewer:

joypip

Cooking Level: Expert

Home Town: Puyallup, Washington, USA

Living In: Wenatchee, Washington, USA

Reviewed: Mar. 28, 2006

What a change-friendly recipe! I used this recipe on my first shot at making biscotti. I had to leave out almonds due to an allergy, I used anise flavoring instead of the orange zest b/c I did not have any on hand - the anise is my favorite hint of flavor in biscotti so it seemed right. Also I used half whole wheat flour and half AP white flour and THAT really worked too. I normally to change a recipe so much before trying the original but this is just so forgiving. Oh, the most important part is - EVERYONE loved it. My sunday school class, my mother, my 3yr old daughter, ... I had *Nonni's* biscotti there to (to fall back on just in case mine was terrible) but everyone went for mine first. I love that! Thank you so much, the recipe is delish! I won't look any further but I will continue to experiment with yours!

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19 users found this review helpful

Reviewer:

onassis75

Cooking Level: Expert

Home Town: Rome, Georgia, USA

Living In: Murfreesboro, Tennessee, USA

Reviewed: May 15, 2003

SAVE BIG BUCKS!!!! I used to purchase my coffee-dunking biscotti by the truckload and at gourmet food prices, it was a guilty pleasure...but NO MORE!! This biscotti was more dense and subtle in sweetness, and stronger in vanilla taste (yum)than most that I've bought. The best feature is that it certainly proclaims "FRESHLY BAKED". I will, however, begin to add different things to this fairly basic recipe (such as hazelnut, cocoa, etc) to be able to offer choices to our overnight guests for their breakfast coffee. The only step I improved upon as I did more and more is the spreading chocolate on the finished biscotti. I scooped a spoonful, poured it along the bottom side of the biscotti, then scraped it with backside of butterknife to make even, thin layer. Be sure to let the chocolate set (fridge for 20 min worked well for me). Mangia!

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16 users found this review helpful

Reviewer:

KAREN WANG

Cooking Level: Intermediate

Home Town: Austin, Texas, USA

Reviewed: Dec. 19, 2010

This is the 3rd AR biscotti recipe I've tried - and the sweetest (also tried "Biscotti" & "Pistachio and Cranberry"). I used fresh orange zest and put the choc chips in the batter (1/2c) so I wouldn't have to mess with dipping afterward. Also I did not toast the almonds. I think the zest and untoasted almonds are too chewy. And choc chips make it too sweet. Smells fantastic and tastes nice, but I didn't reach for a third like I did the others. Will try again with those modifications. Be sure to flatten it out to 1/2" high b4 baking. Yield for me was 48 1/2" pieces.

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15 users found this review helpful