Follow me over to Mandy's for chocolate Biscotti!

I'm guest blogging for Mandy today! Do pop over and show her some Bloggy-love, won't you?

I've been following Mandy's wonderful blog for a little over a year now. It's funny how you know right away whether or not a new blog discovery will hold your attention... And, my connection to Mandy's blog was instant. Her blog, Home with Mandy has been on my list of favorites since the very first day. Why? Well, first of all, Mandy's day-job just happens to be my dream job. Every time I visit, I secretly hope that she'll have some tidbit to share about one of the fabulous events she's planning. Secondly, Mandy became engaged last April, during a camping trip turned very romantic, and on Good Friday, no less! So of course, I had to stick around for the wedding and honeymoon! But most of all, Mandy is a terrific cook that reminds me a lot of myself as a newlywed who worked hard to make her way deeper into her man's heart, one delicious dish at a time.

When Mandy asked me to guest host her blog I was very flattered, but also sort of perplexed. I mean, Mandy seems to have this blogging and cooking thing down. I had to wonder what she imagined I might add to her already amazing and inspiring blog. So I asked her. Turns out that although Mandy enjoys cooking, she doesn't bake - So she hoped I would share a desert recipe. So for Mandy... Because I know she aspires to bake sweet deserts and savory breads for her sweetheart, and because she and her husband Jim spent their honeymoon in Italy, I'm sharing my very first attempt at chocolate biscotti.

Now, biscotti has never been on my radar because it usually contains almonds, to which I am allergic. Additionally, since I don't drink coffee, I have very little use for a cookie that requires dunking in order not to chip a tooth. Fortunately, I am not allergic to chocolate, quite the opposite! And, the recipe I've chosen proves that homemade biscotti doesn't have to be as hard, (dried out) as commercially baked biscotti.

Biscotti, more correctly known as Biscotti di Prato is a twice-baked cake originating in the Italian city of Prato. This particular biscotti recipe was shared with me by, Farmgirl Susan and it is so easy and so adaptable to your own add-in desires and decorating whims that I know you'll want to make it again and again!

I sent Mandy some of this biscotti, which I hope she's enjoying right now, along with my appearance on her blog!

Now then... Let's make some Biscotti, shall we?

Melt 4 ounces of chocolate, (I prefer to use
only Guittard) and 1 stick of butter together

Beat two eggs and one cup granulated sugar until it is a

light color. Then add your melted butter/chocolate

Mix chocolate/butter mixture with blended

egg and sugar and add one teaspoon vanilla

Add two cups of all-purpose flour, 1 and a half teaspoons of baking

powder, 1 teaspoon of salt and 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa and

mix until just combined. Your dough will be soft, but not sticky

I dropped my dough out onto plastic wrap and used it to form

a ball. After I cut the dough into two pieces, I worked dried

cranberries into one of the loaves. You might like to add
nuts or other fruit, such as dried cherries, raisins or oranges 

Form dough halves into two loaves measuring 3 inches wide

by nine inches long. Brush the tops with beaten egg white

Bake in a preheated, 350 degree oven for

twenty-five minutes or until tops are set  

Like this!    

The rich, heavenly scent of chocolate will fill your home, I promise!

Transfer loaves to a rack to cool. The longer you can allow

your biscotti cakes to cool, the easier they will be to slice

After the biscotti is cooled, slice it into 1/2 inch pieces across the width

and lay the pieces back onto your baking sheet. Lower the temperature

on your oven, (or preheat if you turned it off like I did) to 275 degrees

Bake your Biscotti cookies for 20 minutes, turning over half-way

through. After they are baked, allow your cookies to cool again

At this point, you could just enjoy your homemade biscotti or store it

in an airtight container or even freeze it. However, I love to embellish

my baked treats so I melted a bit more chocolate and spread it onto

one side of my cookies. Then I added pearl sprinkles. Just because...

I would have preferred to use white Guittard chocolate with bits of Heath
toffee sprinkled over it. But for today, for my first attempt, this will do!

How will you decorate your Biscotti? 

I wish to thank Mandy for inviting me to join her, and for introducing me

to all of her readers too. I would also like to mention again that I first

discovered this incredible recipe here, where you may also find it!