This weekend I’ve been playing with a new kitchen toy – a machine that grinds wheat into flour. It’s a lot of fun and I’ll tell you more about it later, but first I want to feature a few recipes that I’ve used with my freshly milled whole wheat flour. This Brickle Biscotti recipe is from the King Arthur Flour Whole Grain Baking Book. It's a cookie that combines the interesting pairing of whole wheat flour with toffee bits. Toffee bits are also known as Bits o' Brickle or Heath Toffee Bits.
Whole Wheat Flour Plus Bits o' Brickle
While I’m not exactly a health nut, I really enjoy the taste and texture of different types of flour, and in this case, was curious how wheat flour would taste in a toffee studded biscotti. The best I can describe this cookie is that it’s like taking a Heath Bar, removing the chocolate, adding a little wheat and turning it into biscotti. Who knew that wheat and toffee were such a good combo? Oh, the KA people. Of course. Anyway, I wish I’d tried this recipe sooner because the cookies are rich, sweet and kind of addictive (even though I think I overbaked mine a little).
Butter Brickle Biscotti
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature (84 grams)
⅔ cup granulated sugar (130 grams)
1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
¼ teaspoon salt
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups whole wheat flour (260 grams), but use more if needed
1 cup toffee bits
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
In a large mixing bowl, beat together the butter and sugar. Beat in the baking powder and salt, then add eggs one at a time, beating until well mixed. Beat in the vanilla. Add the flour and stir until it’s incorporated, then stir in the toffee bits. Scoop the dough onto a parchment lined baking sheet and shape into a 14" long by 2 ½" wide log. Using wet fingertips, shape the dough as smoothly as possible.
Place in the oven and bake until the top feels firm - about 25 minutes. Remove the pan from the oven and reduce the temperature to 325 degrees F. Let cool for 15 minutes, then lightly spritz the log with water - then let sit for 5 more minutes. Use a serrated knife to cut the log into ¾" thick diagonal slices. The logs are delicate, so be careful.
Place the sliced pieces upright back on the baking sheet and return it to the oven. Bake until the biscotti are a light golden - about 25-30 more minutes. Remove and place on a wire rack to cool completely. Makes about 21.
Ashley says
I love that these use whole wheat flour and toffee bits!
Shannon says
..."a machine that grinds wheat into flour"... that sounds interesting, can't wait to hear more about it! Sounds like you'll be getting into some intense bread-making.
Deborah says
Anna,
I've been lurking on your blog for years. Lurk. Lurk. Had to chime in when you said you were using whole wheat flour via a wheat grinder. Yeah! I love using my wheat/wheat grinder for bread, and I hope you post lots of recipes on what else I can do with the flour.
LimeCake says
wow i'd love to have a new appliance that grinds wheat into flour! i'd imagine it must be quite expensive. love the color on these biscotti. golden and delicious!
Jan Harris says
Why the water, do you think? Could you skip that part, I don't have a spritzer.
snooky doodle says
yummy these must be delicious!
the blissful baker says
yum, this would go great with a cup of strong coffee! mmm
Katrina says
Cool. What kind of grain mill is it I have one and use it all the time. Mine is a Nutramill. I'm in a hot cocoa kind of mood and a couple of these for dunkin' sounds really good. Love toffee a lot lately.
Anna says
Emily, I just happened to have some around :).
Amalia, I do like very hard, crunchy biscotti. This recipe does have butter and it does make the biscotti a little easier to bite into, but the brickle adds back more crunchiness. It also makes it pretty sweet.
Amalia says
I think I read once that you usually like biscotti with little or no fat because fo the crunch factor...And I'm with you a 100%, I like biscotti without oil or butter for the same reason...is this one different? I mean, still very crunchy? or is it softer?
Emily says
I love the sound of this biscotti! I really like those toffee bits. I don't buy them often enough.