chocolate hazelnut biscotti
Do you need a chocolate hazelnut biscotti recipe to see you through last minute cravings and/or impromptu entertaining? I thought so. This completely easy cookie recipe will see you safely through any kind of cookie emergency you find yourself in.
I first had these addictive cookies in the backyard of a friend’s house. Actually the yard was more of a Renaissance garden. And the house is actually a castle complete with moat. And did I mention my friend is a Princess?
I was invited to lunch there by Princess Claudia who, with her sister Giada, are the current descendants of the family that oversees, take care of and – most importantly – enjoys Castello Ruspoli. While the Castello (located in Vignanello) is regularly open to the public, it remains the summer home of the Ruspoli family, and they use this incredible setting to entertain both friends and family all through the year. So lucky me!
I was actually there working on my book The Italian Table. And you can find the entire menu, complete with recipes, from that magical day is covered in the book. For now, though, I’ll leave you with these cookies.
Hazelnuts are a big deal in this part of the world, and the hills in this part of northern Lazio are covered in hazelnut groves. Not surprisingly, they make their way into many dishes, both sweet and savory. Crucchi (the local name for these biscotti) belong to a type of rustic cookie that shows up all over Italy with slight variations depending on local ingredients. These ones not only use local hazelnuts, but also chocolate, which turns them a dark, intense color. Don’t expect a soft chewy cookie. These are very hard, but also very addictive. They go perfectly with coffee at the end of a meal.
Also? Don’t worry if they look kind of ugly. In other parts of Italy variations on this nut filled cookie are usually called Brutti ma Buoni – Ugly but Good.
Another thing: the dough is very stiff and sticky and if you use your hands to mix the dough you’ll find yourself with very chocolatey sticky hands. (Which happened to me on national TV.)
But besides tasting great, these cookies take about a minute to pull together and then another 20 to bake. They are that easy.
While you can eat them on their own, they are perfect with a tiny cup of strong espresso. And if you want to fancy things up, if you are having guests, serve them with hazelnut gelato
Chocolate Hazelnut Biscotti – Crucchi
Prep 7 mins
Cook 20 mins
Total 27 mins
Yield 16-20
Ingredients
1 cup of unsweetened or bittersweet cocoa powder
1 1/2 cup sugar
1 cup hazelnuts
2 eggs
2 tablespoons all purpose flour
pinch salt
Instructions
Preheat oven to 320°F
Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.
The hazelnuts should be halved. If your hazelnuts are whole, just stick the point of a knife into the nut at the fat, dimpled, end and the nut should break in half pretty easily. Don’t worry if they aren’t perfect.
Place the flour, cocoa powder, sugar, and salt in a bowl and mix to combine.
Crack the eggs into a small bowl, and beat with a fork.
Add the eggs to the flour mixture and mix. The mixture will be very dry and stiff, don’t worry. Use your hands to finish mixing, adding the nuts at the end.
Using your hands, form irregular, raggedy, mounds, of about a tablespoon of dough each, and drop on cookie sheet, about 1 inch apart.
Bake for 20 minutes.
Take out of oven and cool. The cookies will be very hard on the outside, and a bit moist and chewy on the inside.If making ahead, store in an airtight container. They will last for up to a week.
For the full menu for Lunch in a Renaissance Garden see my book The Italian Table: Creating Festive Meals for Family and Friends.
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