Hallmark Surface Pattern Designer, Kim P., started making homemade biscotti more than 10 years ago, mostly because she loved them. After all, they are the perfect cookie! Crunchy, chewy, loaded with all sorts of delicious bits, and begging to be dunked in coffee or tea. They were also a bit of a mystery to her: she had never made anything quite like them. So, her curiosity was piqued, and she had to figure them out!
Today, we’re lucky enough to benefit from her hard work. She’s sharing one of her favorite homemade biscotti recipes just in time for you to treat your friends and family!
When I learn something new, I have to go through the process many times and refine every step. I love the challenge of making something as perfectly and professionally as I can, as well as figuring out how to do it as quickly and easily as possible.
Once I had the basic process of baking biscotti down, the creative part of me jumped in, wanting to try new flavors. So obviously, I ended up with dozens of biscotti, and I started giving them away.
One December several years ago, my teenage son walked into the kitchen, and saw the table covered with finished biscotti, and announced, “Now it’s Christmas!” That sealed it – it had become a family tradition.
So, literally thousands of homemade biscotti later (I bake about 500 every Christmas), I’ve landed on my favorite recipes, and I bake them every year to give away to friends and family.
My friends have told me how much they look forward to them every year – how they share them with a daughter (or hide them from their husband!), how they love sitting down with a couple of biscotti while enjoying a quiet cup of coffee, taking a few moments for themselves. Hearing these little stories are a big deal to me – they make my Christmas really special. Knowing that I’ve made this busy time a little more peaceful, or made someone feel valued, makes me happy.
I love my Orange Cranberry Walnut Biscotti recipe because of the sunny color and bright flavor. Cranberry and orange are a classic combination, and there are lots of walnuts added for a satisfying richness.
Orange Cranberry Walnut Biscotti
Gather all your ingredients, and let the eggs sit out long enough to warm to room temperature. (You can place them in a bowl of warm water to hurry this along). Grease a large cookie sheet. I use a professional size pan, 18”x26”. If you don’t have that size, grease 2 standard size cookie sheets.
Measure all your dry ingredients into a large bowl, and whisk them together.
Add the eggs and orange juice. Mix with a mixer until fully combined. Then add the walnuts and dried cranberries. Make sure you break up the cranberries so they don’t stick together. Mix well.
Turn out the very sticky dough onto the cookie sheet, spooning it roughly into 2 rows (or 3 rows if you are using standard sized cookie sheets). Using a knife or offset spatula, spread the thick, sticky, obstinate (sometimes uncooperative) batter into loaf shapes. This is the hardest part, but is really doesn’t have to be perfect – the batter will spread out and even up during baking! Bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes, until firm and golden brown.
Remove from the oven and let cool at least 20 minutes (longer if convenient). Slice the loaves apart lengthwise if necessary, and cut them in half. Lift the half loaves with a large spatula onto a cutting board. (At this point you can wrap the loaves and freeze to finish at a later time). Slice them into pieces about ½”- ¾” wide. Place them back on the cookie sheet about an inch or so apart, and bake them another 15-20 minutes. Only half of them will fit on one sheet, so use a second sheet, or bake them in two turns.
Remove from the oven and let them cool completely. Melt white chocolate in the microwave. If it seems too thick, add a teaspoon of shortening or coconut oil. (Do not use butter, which has moisture in it, and will cause the chocolate to seize up.) Dip one side of the biscotti into the chocolate, scrape off excess with a knife and lay chocolate side down, on waxed paper, butcher paper or parchment. I usually leave some without white chocolate, so to justify eating them for breakfast…
I usually bake 6-8 batches of homemade biscotti each year, including:
- Orange Cranberry Walnut
- Lemon Coconut with Candied Ginger
- Mocha Almond Chocolate Chip
- Almond Chocolate Chip
- Dark Chocolate Chip
- Chocolate Walnut
- Anise Almond
Orange Cranberry Walnut Biscotti Recipe
Heat oven to 350 degrees
Grease a large 18”x26” cookie sheet, or 2 standard sized cookie sheets
Measure into a large bowl:
- 3 cups flour
- 1 ½ cups sugar
- 1/3 cup yellow cornmeal
- 1 ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ¾ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt, generous
- 3 tablespoons orange zest
Whisk to combine well.
Add:
- 5 Eggs
- 3 tablespoons Orange Juice
Mix with a mixer until well combined.
Add:
- 2 cups Walnuts
- 2 cups Dried Cranberries (Craisins)
Turn out the very sticky dough onto the cookie sheet, spooning it roughly into 2 rows (or 3 rows if you are using standard sized cookie sheets). Using a knife or offset spatula, spread the thick batter into loaf shapes. Bake for 20-25 minutes, until firm and golden brown.
Remove from the oven and let cool at least 20 minutes, longer if convenient. Slice the loaves apart lengthwise if necessary, and cut them in half. Lift the half loaves with a large spatula onto a cutting board. (At this point you can wrap the loaves and freeze them to finish at a later time.) Slice the half loaves into pieces about ½”- ¾” wide. Place them back on the cookie sheet about an inch or so apart, and bake them at 350 another 15-20 minutes. Only half of them will fit on one sheet, so use a second sheet, or bake them in two turns.
Remove from the oven and let them cool completely.
Melt white chocolate chips or bark in the microwave.
If it seems too thick, add a teaspoon of shortening or coconut oil. (Do not use butter, which has moisture in it, and will cause the chocolate to seize up.) Dip one side of the biscotti into the chocolate, scrape off excess with a knife and lay, chocolate side down, on waxed paper, butcher paper or parchment.
When chocolate has set, store in tightly closed cookie container. Better to bake these in the winter as humidity will make them soft.
Makes 44-48 Biscotti
What are your favorite holiday treats? Share with us on Instagram @think.make.share or on Facebook!
I have been the happy recipient of Kim’s biscotti, I can say that it is the best !
Not a big fan of this flavor . Is there somewhere I could get the recipe for the chocolate ones?
Hi Ruth! I’m sorry, but the other recipes aren’t available to us right now. —Kelly
Is there a chance of getting the recipe for the almond and anise biscotti? ?
Hi Lisa! I’m sorry, but the other recipes aren’t available to us right now. —Kelly
Can’t wait to try this recipe, Orange Cranberry is my favorite fall flavor.
would love to have the recipe for the Dark Chocolate Chip too!!
I would love to print out the recipe for the Orange Cranberry Walnut Biscotti listed here, but I’m afraid I’ll be printing all the previous pages in the Hallmark newsletter which would be too great in number. Can I just get the recipe and the prep directions?
Found only one biscotti recipe listed..
The Orange Cranberry Walnut. How do
I find the other biscotti recipes?
Thanks
Hi Marie! I’m sorry, but the other recipes aren’t available to us right now. —Kelly
Can I get your recipe for chocolate biscottis?? The picture makes them look amazing!
Thanks,
Patty
Hi Patty! I’m sorry, but the other recipes aren’t available to us right now. —Kelly
Could we get the other Biscotti recipes somewhere too?
Hi Nancy! I’m sorry, but the other recipes aren’t available to us right now. —Kelly
Kim:
I plan on making these the first of November to take with me to my Aunt in Ardmore, Oklahoma. I’m an avid HMK collector but more so a cookie cutter collector. I would love to have 2 recipes of yours as I just recently retired with my City. And my friends love to drink coffee. I would like your Dark Choc Chip and Lemon Coconut W/Candied Ginger if you share. I’d share any of my recipes with you as well. Thanks
Hi Barb! I’m sorry, but the other recipes aren’t available to us right now. —Kelly
Could I use apple or cranberry juice instead of orange juice
We’ll do some digging and find out!
Trish
OK! We have an answer from Kim:
You could, but it would change the flavor of these significantly.
The flavor orange juice and peel are pretty important in this recipe.
Cranberry juice would also lend a pink cast.
All that said, I’m nothing if not an experimental baker! Try it!
It looks like your really enjoying yourself….
Your biscotti look beautiful!
Such a nice thing to do for friends and loved ones.
Have a Peaceful happy year?????????
Made these biscotti last night; absolutely delicious and easy to make…they came out even better than authentic Italian recipes I’d tried before.
I used all khorasan flour instead and flavoured with orange zest & ground arabic cardamom – match made in heaven!
I cannot cook with fats for health reasons, so recipes like this are much appreciated. Thanks so much for posting!
That’s wonderful, Tina—so glad you enjoyed them!
Hello,
Just curious about the “cornmeal” is it in ALL your biscotti recipes? Will you be sharing them ALL SOON, I saw people asked awhile back.
I was wondering about the cornmeal because is it grainy and strong taste?
I’m new to baking etc. So I just really don’t know.
Thank you so much! if you can share in anyway… I greatly appreciate your time.
Gina
Hi Gina! We don’t have any of the other recipes available to us. The cornmeal adds a little bit of texture but should be ok with fine or medium-grind cornmeal. It just adds a little of a slightly nutty, and toasty flavor!
Thank you for the recipe, it’ll taste good with my orange spice tea. Every few yrs l get in the mood for biscotti 🙂
Can I make these in a biscotti pan and what would you change
Hi, Karen! Unfortunately, this is outside of our area of expertise! 🙁
Trish
Cornmeal? I never heard of a biscotti having cornmeal.
I will try it.
Can I use pecans instead of walnuts? Do they keep a long time at room temperature or should I freeze for use in a month ?
Thank you
I can hardly wait to make these
Hi, Pat! Big yes on the pecan/walnuts——you can do a 1/1 swap. If it’s going to be a while before you eat or give your biscotti, definitely pop it in the freezer. If it’s out and loses its crunch, you can crisp it right back up in the oven. Hope this helps! Trish
Do you happen to know the approx calorie amount for this?
I love the recipe and my friend does also, however shed love to know the calorie amount if possible
Hi Marina! We don’t have the calorie count on these. So sorry, Kelly.
Thank you for this recipe have been looking for one that is simple and easy to make