Almond and Pistachio Biscotti

This one is a classic Italian biscotti, crunchy with a softness to the nuts.

Ingredients

- Almonds and Pistachios, 200 grams combined.  Washed and skin removed (see later)

- 1 cup of all purpose flour

- 2/3 cup of castor sugar

- 5 egg whites at room temperature.

- 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract.

Directions

Wash the eggs and then carefully separate eggs and whites.  Save the egg yolks for strawberry zabaglione.  Add the eggs one at a time to avoid contamination of any yolks.

In a large mixing bowl beat the eggs on medium-high till they become fluffy and form stiff peaks.  This can take anywhere from a few minutes to an hour depending on the weather and how well you separated the whites from the yolks.  Don't be too eager to add the sugar, wait till your peaks form.  Then gradually add the sugar, the vanilla and then the flour.  Upon adding the flour the mixture will turn to a sticky dough which is going to give you your almond bread.

Fold in the cleaned and de-skinned almonds and pistachios.  Not sure how to remove the skins?  Put 5 cups of water in a medium sized bowl and microwave for a few minutes until hot.  Add the nuts to the hot water and let them sit for 2 minutes.  Run the contents through a collander and then squeeze the almonds between your fingers and the skin will slide off.  Don't worry if there is a bit left on the almonds.

Once folded in you are ready to add the mixture to your bread loaf tray, greased or lined whatever is your preference.  A small one should be sufficient so that the mixture comes up about one inch and will form the breadth of your biscotti.

Pop the loaf in the oven at 150C and let it cook for 50-60 minutes until the top becomes brown and firm to the touch.

Once done pull out the tray and let it cool in the try.  After that carefully extract the bread and wrap in alfoil and a clean dry tea towel and let it sit on the bench for 3 days.

3 days later...

Now carefully slice the bread consistently into slices about 3mm wide.  Place the biscotti on a baking tray or lined grill and cook in the oven on 150C for 25-30 minutes.  Times will vary according to the thickness of your biscotti but be careful not to forget them in the oven as they will cinder quickly. 

Once the biscotti brown a little extract them and let them cool on a plate - they will continue to harden when they cool.

These will go great with a hot latte or chocolate.

Enjoy!