Rosemary and Almond Biscotti

After reading about a pine nut and rosemary tart in The Craft of Baking, a cookbook by pastry chef Karen DeMasco, I thought about incorporating rosemary into a new recipe for biscotti, twice-baked cookies with origins in Italy. Almonds, a classic biscotti ingredient, and rosemary, an herb often used in Italian cooking, can be roasted together as a fragrant snack. So I figured the ingredients would work well together in a sweet and savory biscotti, complemented by almond extract and citrus zest; either lemon or orange is delicious. With the addition of butter, these are softer in the middle than traditional biscotti, but still have a delightfully crunchy exterior.

Rosemary and Almond Biscotti

2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
1 cup granulated sugar
1 tablespoon fresh rosemary, coarsely chopped
2 eggs
1 teaspoon almond extract
1 teaspoon lemon or orange zest
1 cup almonds, toasted and coarsely chopped

Preheat oven to 350°F and line a baking tray with parchment paper.

In a small bowl, combine flour, salt, and baking soda. Set aside. In a large bowl, cream together butter, sugar, rosemary, and lemon or orange zest until light and fluffy, about one minute. Stir in eggs and almond extract until smooth and well-combined. Add flour mixture to butter mixture, and stir until just incorporated. Add almonds.

Divide dough in half. Form each half into a rectangle (about 10 inches long and 3 inches wide) on the prepared baking tray, a few inches apart. Lightly flour the dough if it is too sticky to shape. Bake for around 25-30 minutes, until golden brown and just firm to the touch. Let cool for a few minutes, and then cut into equal-sized slices (around 1 inch wide.) Place biscotti cut side down and bake for another 10-15 minutes, or until biscotti are crisp around the edges and golden brown. Once cool, store at room temperature in an airtight container.

Yields around 27 biscotti.