Spiced Fig & Walnut Biscotti

This spiced fig and walnut biscotti is so subtly lovely and unexpected.  

The flavor combo is kind of fascinating, and I absolutely loved the tiny little pops of crunch from the fig seeds. 

Plus, combined with the orange zest and spices, your house will smell amazing while it’s baking!

(I will say that it’s great *with* coffee, but not dunked in it, flavor-wise…)

Making biscotti is so much easier than most people think.  Biscotto (the singular of the plural “biscotti”) literally means “twice baked”, and that’s exactly what we’re going to do with these. 

You make up a simple dough that you bake in a log shape until *just* baked, then let it cool a bit and slice it up.  Then the slices go BACK in the oven for quite a while (for me it’s always longer than recipes say, more like 15-20 minutes on each side).

The result is solid, crisp, and definitely harder than a normal cookie, but not rock hard.  And that’s so they can stand up to time (they’ll last up to two weeks) and dunking.  They’re great for having on hand for company, or sending in a care package. 

Preheat the oven to 325 F.  Spread the walnuts on a baking sheet and toast for 5 to 7 minutes, until golden brown and fragrant. Allow the walnuts to cool completely.  You can turn the oven off for a bit if you’d like.

Place the walnuts and quartered dried figs in a food processor and pulse until they are quite fine (like gravel, see pic).

In the bowl of your stand mixer, cream together the butter and sugars until light and fluffy.

Add the 2 eggs, one at a time, and beat until incorporated, scraping down the sides of the bowl with a spatula occasionally. Then mix in the vanilla and the orange zest.

Add the dry ingredients and mix to form a somewhat firm dough, until just combined.

Then add the ground walnuts and figs and beat until thoroughly combined.

Wrap the dough tightly in plastic wrap and chill for 35-40 minutes, or until it’s nice and firm.  At some point in the middle of this, turn the oven back on to 325 F if you turned it off.

To make your life easier, you *could* kind of pre-shape the dough into a long thin log or two while you wrap it into the plastic wrap, but it’s not necessary.

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.  On a floured board or your counter, use your palms to roll the dough into a pretty thin log that’s the length of the baking sheet (or you can do it directly on the parchment paper). 

I’d recommend making it narrower than  I have here…long and narrow is good.  Place the dough log on the baking sheet.

In a small bowl, beat the egg white with a fork until frothy. Using a pastry brush, glaze the log with some egg white and sprinkle it with granulated sugar.

Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the log is lightly golden brown, firm to the touch and just beginning to crack slightly.

Allow the log to cool on the cookie sheet until cool to the touch, about 40 minutes (it’s simplest to keep the oven on). With a serrated knife, slice the biscotti, slightly at an angle, into 1/2-inch slices.

Lay the slices on the cookie sheet in single layer (you’ll probably need a second baking sheet) and return the biscotti to the oven. 

Cook for 15-20 minutes and flip over to the other side, and bake for another 10-15 minutes.  You want the biscotti golden, toasted, and crisp on each side, not soggy or soft anywhere.

Store the biscotti in an airtight container. They will keep up to about 2 weeks.

Other amazing biscotti recipes you’ll love:

• My all-time fave:  Orange Almond Biscotti
• Tahini Pistachio Biscotti with Dark Chocolate & Sea Salt
• Orange, Apricot, & Pistachio Biscotti
• Chocolate Hazelnut Biscotti

Original recipe from Smitten Kitchen

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Spiced Fig and Walnut Biscotti

Yield: ~24 biscotti

Prep Time: 1 hour

Cook Time: 55 minutes

Additional Time: 40 minutes

Total Time: 2 hours 35 minutes

This fig & walnut biscotti is packed with warm baking spices and orange zest, absolutely bursting with flavor. It's super easy to make (just takes time) and can be stored up to two weeks, a perfect treat to have on hand or a gift to share or send!

Print

Ingredients

• 1 cup of walnut pieces
• 1 cup of dried Turkish or Calimyrna figs, quartered (see notes)
• 3/4 stick (6 tablespoons or 3 ounces) of unsalted butter, softened
• 1/4 cup of granulated sugar, plus more for sprinkling
• 6 tablespoons of dark brown sugar, packed
• 2 eggs, room temp if possible
• 1 teaspoon of pure vanilla extract
• Grated zest of 1/2 a large orange (or 1 small)
• 1 3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons of all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon of baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon of baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon of kosher salt
• 1 teaspoon of ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon of ground nutmeg
• 1/8 teaspoon of ground cloves
• 1 egg white, lightly beaten

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 325 F.  Spread the walnuts on a baking sheet and toast for 5 to 7 minutes, until golden brown and fragrant. Allow the walnuts to cool completely.  You can turn the oven off for a bit if you'd like.
2. Place the walnuts and quartered dried figs in a food processor and pulse until they are quite fine (like gravel, see pic).
3. In the bowl of your stand mixer, cream together the butter and sugars until light and fluffy.
4. Add the 2 eggs, one at a time, and beat until incorporated, scraping down the sides of the bowl with a spatula occasionally. Then mix in the vanilla and the orange zest.
5. Add the dry ingredients and mix to form a somewhat firm dough. Add the ground walnuts and figs and beat until thoroughly combined.
6. Wrap the dough tightly in plastic wrap and chill for 35-40 minutes, or until good and firm.  At some point, turn the oven back on to 325 F if you turned it off.
7. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.  On a floured board or your counter, use your palms to roll the dough into a pretty thin log that's the length of the baking sheet (or you can do it directly on the parchment paper).  Place the dough log on the baking sheet.
8. In a small bowl, beat the egg white with a fork until frothy. Using a pastry brush, glaze the log with some egg white and sprinkle it with granulated sugar.
9. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the log is lightly golden brown, firm to the touch and just beginning to crack slightly.
10. Allow the log to cool on the cookie sheet until cool to the touch, about 40 minutes (it's simplest to keep the oven on). With a serrated knife, slice the biscotti, slightly at an angle, into 1/2-inch slices.
11. Lay the slices on the cookie sheet in single layer (you'll probably need a second baking sheet) and return the biscotti to the oven.  Cook for 15-20 minutes and flip over to the other side, and bake for another 10-15 minutes.  You want the biscotti toasted and crisp on each side, not soggy or soft anywhere.
12. Store the biscotti in an airtight container. They will keep up to about 2 weeks.

Notes

1. If you can't find Turkish or Calimyrna figs, you can use regular dried figs. I got mine on Amazon.

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