Vanilla Bean Biscotti is the perfect thing to have with your morning coffee or tea. Light, slightly sweet, and filled with lots of vanilla bean flecks. Totally irresistible!
Y'all, I think biscotti is totally underrated! It doesn't get enough attention and it is one of the most delicious things - if you're a coffee or tea drinker that is.
Vanilla Bean Biscotti is nothing short of amazing. It is filled with loads of vanilla, slightly sweet, and very easy to make. If you have never made your own biscotti now is the time!
So what is biscotti? It is basically a twice-baked cookie. It originated in Italy and is meant to be enjoyed with a hot cup of coffee or tea.
Baking the biscotti twice gives it this very crunchy and hard texture that is not easy to eat on its own. But once you dip it into your favorite morning (or afternoon - hello 3 pm slump) then it softens into this beautiful cookie-like biscuit that isn't over the top sweet but just is absolutely perfect.
You will feel so fancy eating this!
How to Make
This starts out with a traditional cookie-type dough. Instead of scooping into cookie dough balls, you shape the dough into a long flat log.
- Bake the log for 25-30 minutes then we are going to take it out of the oven and slice.
- This is where the biscotti gets its traditional shape. Be careful! the dough will be hot! Cut the log into long ½" slices, then flip on their sides and place back in the oven for another 25-30 minutes for a second bake.
- Take out of the oven and cool completely.
PRO TIP! Always use a serrated knife to cut the once baked dough. Use a "sawing" back and forth motion as you cut. his will help prevent any cracks and crumbles as you cut. The dough is very delicate.
By slicing and flipping on its side, you're exposing the insides and the second bake helps to bake all the way through the middle and essentially "drying it out" to give it that glorious crunchy texture that is crucial for dipping into coffee or tea.
I will not use any other than Nielson Massey Vanilla Bean Paste. I have tried others and it is HANDS DOWN the best one on the market! It is a little pricey, but a little goes a long way. It will transform all of your baking and you won't go back to using anything else! You can find it on Amazon (affiliate link).
You can also just use regular vanilla extract if you need to.
To enjoy vanilla bean biscotti is rather quite simple.
Simply dunk a small portion of it into your coffee, holding it there for 2-5 seconds. The warm liquid will soften the dough. Remove and take a bite out of the part that has been soaked.
Biscotti is quite hard and not recommended to eat by itself (without dunking in coffee), especially if you like your teeth and have spent lots of money on them.
How to Store
Keep biscotti in an airtight bag or container at room temp for up to 2 weeks.
Vanilla Bean Biscotti makes a perfect gift any time of year! Place in a large mug wrapped with your favorite coffee or English Breakfast Tea and anyone will be happy to receive this! (**all links are affiliate links)
More Cookie Recipes
- No Chill Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies
- White Chocolate Peppermint & Pretzel Cookies
- The Munchies Cookie
- Soft Butter Cookies
- Pumpkin Cookies with Brown Butter Icing
- No Bake Cookies
Recipe
Vanilla Bean Biscotti
- Total Time: 70 minutes
- Yield: 15 1x
Description
Vanilla Bean Biscotti is the perfect thing to have with your morning coffee or tea. Light, slightly sweet, and filled with lots of vanilla bean flecks. Totally irresistible!
Ingredients
- 6 Tablespoons Butter - softened
- ½ Cup Sugar
- ¼ Cup Brown Sugar
- 2 Eggs
- ½ Tablespoon Vanilla Bean Paste*
- ½ Tablespoon Vanilla Extract
- 2 Cups Flour
- 1 ½ Teaspoon Baking Powder
- ½ Teaspoon Salt
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
- In a large bowl, add in the butter and sugars. Using a hand mixer, mix for 3-5 minutes until light and fluffy.
- Add in your eggs, vanilla bean paste, and vanilla extract. Mix for 1 minute until well combined.
- Add in your flour, salt, and baking powder. Mix until everything comes together in a thick sticky dough.
- Lightly flour a surface and turn out the dough onto the flour. Roll into a ball until the dough is lightly covered in flour, making it not sticky anymore.
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and place the biscotti dough in the middle. With your hands, begin shaping the dough in an even flat rectangle. You will form the dough into a 10"x 4" rectangle (about ½" tall) **
-
Biscotti Dough Pre Bake - Once the dough is shaped in an even, flat, large rectangle, place in the oven for 25-30 minutes.
-
After the First Bake Before Slicing - Take out once the timer has gone off and cool for 5-10 minutes. Turn the oven down to 325 degrees.
- After the dough has cooled slightly, use a serrated knife to carefully cut the biscotti into long pieces. Each biscotti should be about a ½" thick. You will get around 15 long pieces. Carefully flip each piece on its side - exposing the inside. The dough will still be soft so be gentle when cutting and flipping over.
-
Sliced Biscotti Ready for a Second Bake - Place back in the oven for 30 minutes. At the 15 minute mark take out and flip each piece over.
- Once they have finished cooking, take them out of the oven and let them cool.
- Enjoy vanilla bean biscotti with a hot cup of coffee or tea by dipping a little bit into the hot liquid for a couple of seconds then eating the part that has been soaked.
Notes
- If you do not have or cannot find vanilla bean paste, just use 1 Tablespoon of vanilla. I find that Nielsen-Massey Vanilla Bean Paste is the best! You can find it here on Amazon (*affiliate link). A little goes a long way so this will last you a long time.
- You can also shape the dough into 2 smaller logs to make a smaller biscotti. Divide the dough in half and place each half on a separate baking sheet. Shape into a long flat rectangle log and follow the recipes as directed. This will give you about half the size of biscotti and is a perfectly cute smaller size! Great for gift giving too.
- Store leftovers in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 60 minutes
- Category: Biscotti
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: Italian
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 Biscotti
- Calories: 152
- Sugar: 10 g
- Sodium: 89.9 mg
- Fat: 5.4 g
- Carbohydrates: 23.2 g
- Fiber: 0.5 g
- Protein: 2.6 g
- Cholesterol: 37 mg
