Pumpkin Fiddlesticks

Another version of baby biscotti for  Luke.  See the banana fiddlestick recipe here.

Ingredients: 

   3 cups of flour
   1 cup of sugar
   2 eggs

   1 1/2 cup pumpkin puree
   2 Tbsp butter, softened
   1 tsp vanilla extract
   1 tsp baking powder
   1 Tbsp ginger
   1 tsp salt
   1/2 tsp cinnamon
   1/8 tsp nutmeg
   1/8 tsp of cloves
   1/8 tsp allspice

Directions:

• Sift together flour, baking powder and spices, set aside.
• Cream together butter and sugar until well incorporated (it won’t cream perfectly). 
• Combine eggs, pumpkin and vanilla, and beat until smooth, about 2 minutes.
• Add flour mixture and stir well. If dough is still really wet to the touch, you can chill it for 15-20 minutes to make it easier to handle or dust with flour.
• Divide the extremely wet dough into four equal parts, shape into logs as best you can using flour to prevent dough from sticking to your hands. Place on the prepared baking sheet. Spread into1/4 inch half-inch deep loaves. 
• Bake for 20 mins, remove from oven and let cool til you can handle loaves without burning yourself. Using a serrated bread knife, slice into 1/4 inch pieces. 

Adapted from Cuppylicious

Vanilla Biscotti

My husband is only supporting my biscotti addiction.  He requested some plain Vanilla Biscotti.  So I took up the challenge and apparently the results were so good that he won't even share them with me!

(One note: When I made these I did a double batch and used 3 vanilla beans instead of 2. I was planning on sharing them with family at a bday party yesterday but Tom said they were all his!)

Ingredients:

   2 1/2 cups flour
   1 cup sugar
   1 vanilla bean
   2 eggs
   1/2 cup butter, softened
   3 tsps vanilla extract

   1 tsp baking powder
   1/2 tsp salt (or less)

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 350.
• Mix flour, baking powder, and salt in a small mixing bowl, set aside.
• Beat sugar and softened butter until smooth. 
• Crack eggs into a small bowl, scrape vanilla bean with the bake side of a knife into eggs.  Add vanilla and wisk.  Add to sugar/butter mixture and beat until smooth. 
• Add flour mixture to egg mixture and mix just until just blended.
• Divide dough into two pieces. Form into long flat loaves about 1/2 inch tall and 12-15 inches long. Place the loaves 3-4 inches apart on a prepared or non-stick baking sheet.
• Bake for 30 minutes or until golden brown. Let cool for 5 minutes (or until you can handle the loaves without burning yourself) on a cutting board. With a serrated or extremely sharp kitchen knife, cut diagonally into 1/2 inch thick slices. Lay the slices flat on the baking sheet.
• Bake for 10-15 minutes, turning over once.

Cinnamon Almond Biscotti

I admit it.  I have a biscotti addiction now!  I blame my friend Cuppy, from whom I got this recipe which I then altered slightly, because I alter everything :)

Ingredients:

   2 1/2 cups flour

   1 cup sugar
   1 cup toasted, unsalted almonds
   2 eggs
   1/2 cup butter, softened
   2 tsps vanilla extract
   2 tsps ground cinnamon

   1 tsp almond extract
   1 tsp baking powder
   1/2 tsp salt (or less)

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 350.
• Toast almonds on a baking sheet for 10 mins at 350, flipping them halfway through.
• Mix flour, baking powder, salt and cinnamon in a small mixing bowl, set aside.
• Beat sugar and softened butter until smooth. Add eggs, almond extract and vanilla, beat until smooth. Add flour mixture to egg mixture and mix just until just blended. Fold in almonds.
• Divide dough into two pieces. Form into long flat loaves about 1/2 inch tall and 12-15 inches long. Place the loaves 3-4 inches apart on a prepared or non-stick baking sheet.
• Bake for 30 minutes or until golden brown. Let cool for 5 minutes (or until you can handle the loaves without burning yourself) on a cutting board. With a serrated or extremely sharp kitchen knife, cut diagonally into 1/2 inch thick slices. Lay the slices flat on the baking sheet.
• Bake for 15-18 minutes, turning over once.

Banana Fiddlesticks/Biscotti

I adapted a recipe in order to create banana fiddlesticks for Luke.  Those with toddlers who use the Plum line of baby foods know what I am talking about and know they are expensive.  Making your own is definitely the way to go and baby biscotti are great ;)


The dough is extremely wet and sticky, but that's what I am going for as when I make these for Luke I don't bake them dry but leave them soft they way he prefers them.  

You will need:
  1 cup very ripe bananas, mashed
  1 egg
  2 tbsp. brown sugar
  1 tsp. vanilla extract
  2 cup all-purpose flour
  1/2 cup sugar
  1 tsp. baking powder
  1 tsp. cinnamon
  1/2 tsp. salt


Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.  Grease your baking sheet or line with parchment paper. Combine the mashed bananas, egg, brown sugar and vanilla in a large bowl.  Mix until well combined.  In another mixing bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt. Stir together to mix.  Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix until well combined.
   
    For baby biscotti (aka fiddlesticks), divide the dough into four equal parts, shape into logs as best you can using flour to prevent dough from sticking to your hands.  Place on the prepared baking sheet.   Spread into1/4 inch half-inch deep loaves. Bake for 20 25 mins, remove from oven and let cool til you can handle loaves without burning yourself.  Using a serrated bread knife, slice into 1/4 inch half inch pieces.  Place the slices back onto the baking sheet on their side and bake for an additional 5 minutes.  Remove from the oven, flip the biscotti over to the other side, and bake for 5 more minutes.  Remove from the oven and let cool completely on the baking sheet.


(I was originally baking the biscotti again after cutting them when making fiddlesticks but found that they got really chewy, which Luke did not care for.  So the above strike-thru's are where I have modified my original recipe.)




    For normal biscotti, divide the dough into two equal parts, spread into two logs on the baking sheet, about 4 inches wide and 1 inch deep, leaving at least 4 inches or more between the two logs.  Bake for 25 minutes, remove from the oven, reduce the heat to 250 degrees F and let cool for 10 minutes.  Using a long, thin knife slice the biscotti into 1/2-3/4 inch pieces on the diagonal.  Place the slices back onto the baking sheet on their side and bake for an additional 10 minutes.  Remove from the oven, flip the biscotti over to the other side, and bake for 10 more minutes.  Remove from the oven and let cool completely on the baking sheet.


Adapted from Annie's Eats.