Chocolate Espresso Dried Cherry Biscotti.

I love biscotti. You bake a batch and they can stay around the kitchen for a week or two (since they generally produce a large amount of cookies) and you don't have to worry about them not tasting as fresh as the first day, because if anything, biscotti just get better over time.

I make a different batch of biscotti about once a week and last week I was craving chocolate badly. I didn't want to just do plain chocolate biscotti so I added in a bit of espresso, dried cherries and toasted walnuts. The additions made these biscotti a bit harder to slice after the first baking, but in my opinion it was worth it! The flavor combination is lovely and pretty perfect when dipped into a steaming mug of black coffee in the morning (or even a cold glass of milk before bed). Perfect for the crisp, cold fall and winter mornings ahead!

Chocolate Espresso Dried Cherry Biscotti
Adapted from Good Housekeeping
3 large egg whites
1/3 cup vegetable or canola oil
2 tablespoons strong coffee or espresso (I dissolved a tablespoon of instant espresso in 2 tablespoons of hot water)
1 2/3 cup all purpose flour
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup chopped toasted walnuts
1/3 cup dried cherries

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Combine the egg whites, oil, and coffee or espresso in a small bowl.  Combine all the dry ingredients (flour through salt) in a larger bowl, whisking to make sure everything is combined.  Add the egg white mixture to the dry ingredients and stir in the nuts and cherries.

Divide the dough into two equal portions and form two logs on the baking sheet, each about 12 inches by 1 inch.  Flatten the dough a bit and place in the oven until the logs are firm, 25 to 30 minutes.  Let them cool AT LEAST 30 minutes, preferably almost completely before slicing. If you try slicing them before then, they will crumble horribly.  After they've cooled, cut each log into 1/2 inch slices and arrange the cookies on the baking sheet.  Bake in the oven again until they've crisped up, about 15-20 minutes longer.

Let cool completely and store in an airtight container.

Espresso Meringue Cookies.

Meringues are one of the simplest and cutest cookies one can bake - they're also gluten free, low in fat (fat free unless you add nuts or chocolate), and relatively low calorie as long as you keep them small. I somehow always end up with bags full of egg whites in the freezer. I guess from making a household favorite, crème brûlée, as well as homemade ice creams and custards.

Sundays at my house call for something gluten free, sweet, and fun to photograph. These fit the bill. This is a modified version of a recipe from Tish Boyle's book The Good Cookie - which every baker should own. My copy is covered in grease and the binding is about ready to go. But that's how I like my cookbooks - well-used :) If you want regular meringues, just omit the espresso powder. I adore piping anything, so I always use a bag to pipe meringues fitted with a large star tip. But a teaspoon or tablespoon would work just fine as well.


















Espresso Meringue Cookies
3 large egg whites, at room temperature
3/4 cup superfine granulated sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
1/2 teaspoon espresso powder
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preheat the oven to 200 degrees F. and line a couple of cookie sheets with parchment paper or foil.

In a mixing bowl, combine the egg whites, salt and cream of tartar. Start whisking on medium low speed until they are frothy and white. Add the espresso powder and whisk until soft peaks form. Add the sugar a tablespoon at a time and whisk until the whites hold stiff peaks. Stir in the vanilla extract.

Pipe or spoon the meringues onto the cookie sheets and bake for 1 1/2 to 2 hours, or until dry to the touch. Let cool, then drizzle with chocolate or dust with powdered sugar.

Enjoy :)

What do to when you should be thinking about something else in life.

Oh that's easy. Make cupcakes. In this case I decided to search the interweb for an "oatmeal cake" and came up with a recipe something like this. Only I made them into about 18 cupcakes instead of 2 9-inch layers. You could do either and whip up a slightly more creative frosting than this one and have yourself a real winner.

Chocolate Oatmeal Cake with Cocoa Espresso Buttercream



Cake:
1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup AP flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/3 cup cocoa powder (the recipe said Dutch processed was preferable. I used natural because it wasn't ;)
1 cup sour cream (originally called for buttermilk, I didn't have any.)
2 cups quick-cooking oats
1 handful of chocolate chips or chunks if you want

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and line a couple cupcake tins with papers.

Cream the butter and sugar together until fully incorporated. The mixture will look a little grainy, which is okay. Add the eggs one at a time, beating for about 30 seconds after each one. Combine the flour, salt, baking soda and cocoa powder and add this alternately with the sour cream, ending with the flour mixture. Stir in the oats and chocolate chunks, if desired.

Portion the batter among the cups and bake for about 20 to 25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Let cool completely on a wire rack.



Buttercream:
1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
3 cups icing sugar
1/4 cup cocoa powder
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Pinch of salt
1/4 cup half and half (or milk or water. I have half and half around for my coffee. Yes.)
1 tablespoon espresso powder

Bring the half and half (or milk or water) to a boil and add the espresso powder and stir. Let cool to room temperature.

Put the butter, sugar, vanilla, cocoa and salt into a food processor and blitz until creamy and combined. Then strain in the espresso-steeped liquid (so you don't get too many big granules of espresso - you could use instant espresso powder to avoid this, but I liked the look of the little specks. Like vanilla seeds only not.) and pulse again until it's nice and smooth.

Ice the cooled cupcakes and enjoy! I love chocolate covered espresso beans so they were a natural garnish for these.