Earl Grey Biscotti Bites

Earl Grey Biscotti Bites

I adapted this recipe from one for “Earl Grey Tea Cookies” in the May 2005 issue of Real Simple magazine. The cookies became biscotti (1) when I tried to make them healthy and (2) when I cooked them too long and burned the bottoms (typical), whoops. Additionally, I did not need to make the six dozen cookies of the original recipe, so I thirded everything (except tea leaves and vanilla, which I kept to the full amounts because those are flavors you can never overdo).

Even burned, however, these bites are perfect for dipping in tea, especially in the Sugar Cookie Sleigh Ride tea that will accompany one dozen of them to the winner of the BSI: Dates Contest :-).

Ingredients:

– 2/3 cups whole wheat pastry flour (instead of all-purpose)

– 2 tbsp sugar in the raw (instead of 1/6 cup granulated sugar)

– 2 tbsp Earl Grey tea leaves

– 1/4 tsp salt

– 1 tsp vanilla extract

– 3 chopped/mashed Medjool dates (instead of 1/6 cup powdered sugar)

– 1.5 tbsp unsalted butter, cut into pieces, plus 1.5 tbsp canola oil (instead of 1/3 cup butter)

– 1/2 tsp water

Directions:

1. Heat oven to 375.

2. Pulse together dry ingredients in a food processor until the tea leaves are pulverized.

3. Add remaining ingredients, and pulse together until a dough is formed. My dough was very crumbly, but it stuck together once I kneaded it.

4. On a cutting board, roll dough into a log about 2 inches in diameter.

5. Wrap log in plastic and chill for 30 minutes.

6. Slice log into disks, 1/3 inch thick. I got 24 slices from this recipe.

7. Place 2 inches apart on a parchment-covered cookie sheet.

8. Bake until the edges are just brown (8 minutes got mine too cooked on the bottom, so I’d suggest checking after just 5!).

9. Let cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes, then transfer to wire rack.

P.S. Kath won the contest and reviewed the cookies here!