Orange walnut biscotti

Another recipe to try, just for something different.  This recipe calls for orange from every source:  candied peel, fresh peel, and orange liqueur.

The original recipe called for pecans, but I didn't have any so I used walnuts.  I also didn't have any orange liqueur or even orange juice.  I thought about using orange essence, but that flavor comes from orange peel and there's already a lot of peel in this recipe, so I just used water.  (I don't think that little bit of orange juice or liqueur would add any flavor anyway.)  Otherwise, I followed the recipe.

Cutting off just the thin layer of peel and mincing it is a pain; grated zest would be much easier and faster.  I suppose the larger pieces of minced peel give bursts of flavor here and there, whereas grated zest would add even flavor throughout. 

I made half the recipe, which made 23 somewhat small biscotti.  The recipe calls for the second baking of 10-15 minutes; I left them in for about 20 minutes because I like biscotti hard and crispy so they hold up to dunking.

Conclusion:  These are buttery, with a nice amount of orange flavor, not overpowering (which surprised me because of the quantity of peel.)  They're a little sweet--- fine for a cookie, but sweeter than I like for biscotti--- and I prefer the hard biscotti made without any fat, but these were very tasty.  I might add some spice, especially for Christmas.

Recipe:  Candied Orange Pecan Biscotti via Lou Seibert Pappas