Chia Almond Biscotti

We like to have biscotti in the house and as I've been on a healthy chia seed kick lately, I thought I'd see how combining the biscotti with chia seeds would work.  For this, instead of simply throwing the chia seeds into my normal ingredients, I replaced one of the eggs with a chia gel egg and they turned out firm and crunchy.  Perfect for dunking and they taste great too!

Chia Almond Biscotti

Ingredients ~ Makes approx. 36

2 tbsp chia seeds

2 tbsp water

2 cups whole almonds

2/3 cup granulated sugar

2/3 cup light brown sugar

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1 cup all-purpose flour

2/3 cup ground almonds

1 egg

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

zest of 1 orange

almond milk for brushing tops of loaves

Method

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.

2*.  Make a thick chia gel by mixing the chia seeds with water.  Whisk together and allow the seeds to absorb the water completely.  It will become a thick mixture.  Set aside.

3.  Place almonds in a single layer on a baking sheet and toast in the oven at 350 degrees F. for 10 minutes. Remove and set aside.

4.  In a large bowl, mix toasted almonds, sugars, cinnamon, baking powder, flour and ground almonds. 

5.  In a small bowl, whisk eggs. Add the vanilla and orange zest and whisk until well blended. Add to the flour mixture. 

6.  Work the batter together with lightly floured hands. The mixture will be sticky, but persevere. Keep squeezing the batter with your hands, until a dough starts to form. Once the dough is reasonably firm, divide it in half.

7.  On a lightly floured surface, roll each portion into a log shape that is approximately 10-12 inches long.  Place the logs onto the baking sheet.  Lightly brush a little almond milk over each log.

8.  Bake for approx, 30 minutes, or until the tops of the loaves are shiny and deep golden. Cool on the tray for about 10 minutes. 

9.  Turn oven temperature down to 150 degrees C. 

10*.  Using a large serrated knife, slice logs diagonally into slices, approx. 1/2 an inch thick.  Place slices on their sides onto the baking sheet.  Bake in the oven for approx. 10 mins, then turn oven off and leave the biscotti in there until oven has cooled.  (This is when I had to suddenly put on my chauffeur's hat for one of my children and leave the house for a while.  I returned around 1-1/2 hours later and took the biscuits out of the oven.)

11.  Transfer onto wire racks to cool.  

12.  Store in an air-tight container.  Biscotti should last up to a month, although it's never around long enough in my house to test that theory!

Notes *:

Step 2 - this is an egg replacement.  If you prefer to leave out the chia seeds, skip this step and use 2 eggs instead of 1 in the biscotti recipe. 

Step 10 - At this stage, if I hadn't had to leave the house, I would have baked the biscotti for approx. 30 mins. until dry and crisp, turning halfway through baking.

Enjoy!

Caryl  ♥