February 29, 2016

Meyer Lemon Olive Oil Biscotti


New York is a total food mecca.  It is an understatement, but the bakeries and restaurants there are incredible.  I've only been to New York twice, but each time, I am inspired by all the creativity and passion that I see, get to experience, and eat.  I often read about the bakeries in New York.  I love reading about the new trendy desserts, but I even more love to read about bakers who embrace the sense of happiness and comfort that food brings.

In my reading on bakeries, I came across One Girl Cookies in Brooklyn.  It started as one girl baking cookies out of her tiny apartment who embraced her heritage and family recipes for baking inspiration (I can so relate).  She hired a professional baker to help expand her business, and they ended up getting married.  They opened a homey cozy bakery with a vintage flair and have treats inspired by their Sicilian heritage.  This bakery is on my must-visit list!  While reading more about their baked goods, I came across their recipe for Meyer Lemon Olive Oil Biscotti.

Lemons and olive oil seem like an unusual combination for biscotti, but I was intrigued (largely because of my bounty of Meyer lemons).  This combination works.  I promise, it doesn't taste like lemon olive oil.  ;-)  

I've baked breads with citrus and olive oil with great success and found that the citrus and olive oil balance each other nicely.  The biscotti is not overly sweet, but it's perfect for satisfying the afternoon sweet craving.  Pair it with your favorite tea or coffee, and you have yourself a nice little afternoon pick-me-up. :)   Though the recipe does not use any of the actual juice from the lemon, you could whisk some of the juice with confectioner's sugar to make a glaze for the biscotti.

And now, I just came up with a new idea for Meyer lemons.  Limoncello.   Stay tuned, friends.

Meyer Lemon Olive Oil Biscotti
Yields 3 dozen biscotti

Ingredients:
142 grams (1 cup) raw whole almonds (with skins)
2 large eggs
2 Meyer lemons, zested
1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
198 grams (1 cup) granulated sugar
300 grams (2 1/2 cups) all-purpose flour
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350ºF.  On a large baking sheet, line it with parchment paper, and set aside for later.  On another baking sheet, place the almond on a baking sheet and toast them in the oven for 15 minutes.  The almonds will be lightly browned and fragrant.

Set the nuts aside to cool.  After the nuts have cooled, put them in a food processor and pulse four to six times until the nuts are ground.  Do not overpulse the nuts.

In the bowl of a stand mixer or in a large bowl with a hand mixer, mix the eggs, lemon zest, sugar, extra virgin olive oil, lemon zest, and vanilla extract.  Mix until combined.

In a medium bowl, whisk the ground almonds with the flour, baking powder, and salt.  In three phases, gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, ensuring all ingredients are incorporated before you add more.  Do not over mix.

Scoop the dough onto the parchment paper lined baking sheet, and shape it into 2 logs.  Each log should be about 8 x 2.

Bake for 15 minutes.  Rotate the baking sheet, and bake for another 12 minutes.  Remove from oven, and allow the biscotti to cool for about 15 minutes.  While the biscotti cools, reduce the oven temperature to 250ºF.

Transfer the biscotti logs to a cutting board.  Using a serrated knife, slice the logs into 1/2 inch thick biscotti.  Return the biscotti to the parchment-lined baking sheet, spacing them about 1/2 inch apart.  Bake for 8 minutes.  Rotate and bake for another 8 minutes, or until the biscotti are crisp and lightly golden on the side.  Remove from oven and transfer to a wire rack to cool.

Source: One Girl Cookies

7 comments:

  1. What a lovely story and that biscotti sounds (and looks) so good!

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  2. This recipe looks so perfectly balanced! Sweet but with that perfect balance of lemon to keep the flavor interesting. Yum!!

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  3. My daughter lives in Brooklyn so I'll have to stop by this place one day. At first, I thought that, yes, lemon and olive oil do make strange bed fellows, but then I realize that lemon is often added to olive oil to make salad dressing- oh what interesting discoveries we make!

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  4. The recipe is confusing. It says to add the Lemon Zest TWICE, but never mentions the rest of the lemons (juice, pulp). Is this some sort of typo, or oversight, both, or neither?

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