Biscotti With A Persian Twist

Total Time: 1 hr 10 mins Preparation Time: 25 mins Cook Time: 45 mins

Ingredients

• 3 cups flour (i used equal amounts of organic pastry flour and all purpose flour-will try this subbing 1 cup whole)
• 1 tablespoon baking powder (yes, a tablespoon!)
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup agave, necar (or 3/4 cup of granulated sugar)
• 3/4 cup of smooth unsweetened applesauce (or apple butter)
• 1 -3 tablespoon oil (neutral tasting,i used coconut oil, use more oil for softer biscotti, less oil for crunchier biscott)
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon almond extract
• 1/2 cup tart cherries (sour)
• 1/2 cup almonds
• 1/2 cup cranberries
• 1/2 cup pistachios
• 1 teaspoon ground cardamom

Recipe

• 1 preheat your oven to 325* f and lightly oil one large or two smaller cookie sheets.
• 2 in a large bowl, whisk together flours, salt, baking powder, and cardamom powder if using.
• 3 in another bowl, mix together the agave or sugar, applesauce, oil, and extracts. (use more oil for a softer biscotti, less oil for a crunchier biscotti).
• 4 in thirds, gently add and stir sugar mixture into the flour mixture. batter will be very thick. add the nuts and fruits. finish the mixing with your hands.
• 5 with floured hands, shape the dough into two 3-inch wide “logs” about 3/4 inch thick, with the ends squared off. (measure if you have to; i did!).
• 6 bake the logs for about 25 minutes. remove from the oven, and cool on a wire rack. as they cool, drop the oven temp to 300°f.
• 7 cool the logs on a rack for 15 minutes. cut the logs carefully with a sharp knife straight across into 1/2 inch wide slices.
• 8 place the slices cut side down on the cookie sheets and bake for 5-10 minutes more.
• 9 turn the slices over and cook 5-10 minutes more, or until golden on bottom. note: the biscotti might look under-cooked. they almost certainly are not. they will harden up as they sit.
• 10 cool on racks, then store in an airtight container for up to two weeks.