As promised from my last post, affectionately dubbed by friends overkill Affogato, these are my mini chocolate anise biscotti. Studded with dark chocolate chips, with the lovely scent from orange zest and the sweet flavors of both anise extract and ground anise. And, well just because I sometimes do not do things in small measures, I decided to coat them in dark melted chocolate. Get ready to be transported to biscotti heaven my lovelies!

The dark chocolate, orange zest and ground anise are a trifecta of aromatic flavors that work so well together. I just adore this combination in desserts and find they are simply perfect in this biscotti recipe.

Another thing I am really loving lately is testing out different flours in some of my favorite recipes. One in particular is almond flour, which is high in fiber and a great way to reduce carbohydrates in our diet. It’s nutty flavor and light texture makes it a perfect addition to these chocolate anise biscotti. I have also found that the addition of the almond flour rendered the biscotti much more tender. These are not the rock hard biscotti that will test the strength of one’s new dental work…!

I started off by substituting 1/4, 1/3 and finally 1/2 of all purpose flour with the almond flour and found that the 1/3 cup of almond flour worked best in this recipe. Everything I love about these little morsels are combined in these chocolate anise biscotti. Light and airy with a tender bite, also much lower in calories than most cookies.

Ground anise seeds have a licorice like sweet flavor very similar to star anise and interchangeable in recipes however do purchase them in small quantities as they tend to lose flavor after grinding.

They are really delicious on their own…and dunking them in a frothy cappuccino… will surely take you very quickly, up the stairway, to biscotti heaven!

I often bring a pretty jar of biscotti in to work and not only do they disappear very quickly there is always someone requesting the jar itself! Which reminds me, I should go now to purchase more biscotti jars!

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Chocolate Anise Biscotti

Mini tender chocolate chip biscotti bites. With the sweet scent of anise and grated orange zest and dipped in decadent dark chocolate.

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: Italian

Servings: 4 dozen

Author: Marisa

Ingredients

• 1 3/4 cup all purpose flour
• 1/3 cup almond flour
• 2 teaspoon baking powder
• 2 teaspoon ground anise seeds
• 3/4 cup dark chocolate chips
• 2 large eggs
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1/3 cup butter melted
• 2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon pure anise extract
• 1 tablespoon grated orange zest from 1 very large orange
• 1 egg white lightly beaten for brushing the logs
• 1 cup dark chocolate chips melted (for dipping)

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
• Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper, set aside.
• In a large bowl combine the all purpose flour, almond flour, baking powder, ground anise seeds and chocolate chips. Stir and set aside.
• In a separate smaller bowl, whisk together the eggs, granulated sugar, melted butter, vanilla extract, anise extract and the orange zest.
• Add the wet ingredients to the flour mixture and stir with a wooden spoon until combined and a soft cookie dough has formed.
• With a rubber spatula, scrape the cookie dough onto a lightly floured work surface.
• Divide the dough into 4 equal portions
• Roll 1 portion at a time into a 10 inch log.
• Transfer logs to prepared cookie sheet.
• Brush each log with the beaten egg whites. ( A pastry brush is really handy for this)
• Bake in preheated oven for 20 minutes.
• Remove the cookie sheet from the oven, place the cookie sheet on a cooling rack and let it cool for 10 minutes.
• Once slightly cooled, transfer the logs one at a time to a cutting board and slice diagonally about 3/4 inch pieces.
• Return cookies to the cookie sheet, standing them upright for even baking, and return to the oven and bake for an additional 15 minutes.
• Let cookies cool on wire rack.
• Once cooled, dip the bottom flat end of biscotti into the melted chocolate.
• Scrape excess chocolate with an offset spatula.
• Place dipped biscotti upright on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper.
• Let stand till chocolate is set.

Notes

Melt chocolate in microwave, on high setting, in 30 second intervals.
For easier dipping, thin chocolate with a little vegetable oil and stir well.
Biscotti keep very well in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks. However in my family they only last a few days.