Almond Biscotti (gluten free and date sweetened)
By request, gluten-free biscotti! Several emails came in asking about using g-free flour for my biscotti recipes. Over the years I swapped out the white flour for a mix of wheat/white blend and reduced the sugar, but truly had not considered trying to make them gluten free. Just as I would never replace my pasta; I’d rather give it up than try to “enjoy” a pasta made out of anything but semolina flour, I felt the same way about my biscotti, until…now.
Along with changing the flour, I also decided to try to eliminate the sugar. Even though I was using coconut sugar in some of my recipes, I felt that naturally sweetening the biscotti with dried dates would reap some additional healthy benefits that dates offer. Pretty sweet!
The texture of the two flours pleased me as well. As you can see in the photo, the dough just needs to be formed into the log, pressing and forming into shape.
Now, I’m not sure how the Italians I soon will be cooking with in Italy would feel about this drastic change. I’ll probably not mention my experiment at all… even though this is going to be my favorite biscotti recipe to play with!
Speaking of Italy…in just a few days I’ll be Traveling Solo to Italy. Excited, empowered…scared, overwhelmed. Lots of emotional feelings all running smack together. Thankfully, work has been so busy that I’ve not been able to dwell on what I am about to do. It’s those wee hours in the middle of the night when panic wakes me with all kinds of wild thoughts! The idea of leaving my comfort zone and adventuring out alone leaves me a bit queasy.
Honestly, though, I should feel at ease. My personalized itinerary arrived this week from Cooking Vacations. It’s well organized, detailed to include travel tips and recommendations, exactly where to find my driver – holding the sign, just for me.
As best as I can, I’ll be posting along the way. I’ve been practicing blogging using my iPad; a bit awkward, so please bear with me as I travel and post!
Gluten free and Date Sweetened Almond Biscotti
2 cups oat flour
3/4 cup almond flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
1 cup almonds, roughly chopped
1 tablespoon grated lemon zest
6 dates, pitted (use 9 dates for sweeter biscotti)
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 tablespoon coconut oil
3 eggs
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Prepare a baking sheet with parchment paper or Slipat.
In a large bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. In a food processor or power blender, process the dates, lemon juice, zest, oil and 3 eggs. Pour the wet mixture into the dry and mix together. Add in the almonds. I prefer to use my hands to mix all the ingredients together. The dough will be crumbly at first; continue to hand-knead until the dough is smooth. Divide in two and form each into a long log directly on the baking sheet. If dough is sticky, wet hands lightly to press and form the log.
Bake for 30 minutes or until lightly browned. Remove from oven and reduce oven temperature to 325 degrees. Allow the biscotti to cool for 10 minutes and then slice diagonally. Place slices back on baking sheet standing upright. Bake for 20 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to cool on baking sheet. Store tightly covered. Makes about 2-3 dozen.
spicegirlfla
I love being in the kitchen. Early mornings, soft music, a hot espresso. Easing into the preparation of delicious meals. Glancing through cookbooks, gathering inspiration and planning my day. I look forward to the cycles of the seasons, the pleasures of tasting and savoring and sharing this with those dear to me. Weekends are special to me as my week days are often rushed, but still I create the ambiance, light the candles, set the table and uncork the wine.
15 Comments
Jovina Coughlin
My favorite biscotti- almond. I have a friend who cannot eat gluten, so he will love it if I make some of these for him.
Have a fun trip. Looking forward to hearing about it after you return.
Linda
Thanks Jovina. I hope you do give it a try for him!
Angie@Angie's Recipes
I love these are sweetened with dates instead of refined sugar. They look awesome!
Linda
Thanks Angie. I’ve never liked overly sweet desserts so using the 6 dates was fine for me. My daughter felt it needed to to upped to 9, but that’s her personal sweet tooth!
Mad Dog
They look great – perhaps you could hand out samples to the Italians before telling them about the ingredients 😉
I’m sure you’ll have a wonderful vacation without too many worries. My tip is: if you are in big cities beware of pickpockets. Don’t put your handbag on the floor or on the back of your chair if eating outside. Don’t wear expensive jewellery or carry all your money with you.
Linda
Wow, so many people have warned me about that!! Guess, it is truly something to be aware of. I’m traveling light and very carefully. Thanks for confirming this. How awful that would be!!!
Chica Andaluza
They look and sound wonderful – my goddaughters are both gluten intolerant so I will send them this recipe! I agree with MD’s tips – mine are, if something doesn’t feel right, walk away. If you are enjoying it, stick with it! And don’t alays use a map – getting lost in a town or city is they best way to discover it 🙂
Linda
oh no…my biggest fear is getting lost!! But I’m trying to set my mind on the adventure so I’ll keep your advice close in mind! Thank you Tonya. I love all the tips and advice!
Prudy
You know…I’m the same way. I always think, “Why mess with a good thing?” ….but then I’m always pleasantly surprised when I taste something that is made gluten free, or sugar free, or “whatever-free”…. we’ve come a long way, even from 20 years ago, shoot…even from 5 years ago. There are so many delicious options out there for people who cannot eat certain foods, and now we can add these gorgeous biscotti to that list of options!
And now, Italy… how wonderful!! You are going to have a wonderful time…I’ve never been, but it’s certainly on my bucket list. Have a lovely time.. <3
Ala
Fab idea, Linda! I am just getting into more GF recipes now and I’m totally digging the idea of oat flour + almond flour! I’m just about to get some myself. Also, date sweetener = the best thing ever, right? Right! Great share, girl 🙂
Maureen | Orgasmic Chef
I love biscotti with a lovely cup of tea. Yum!
Have the BEST time in Italy! Stay healthy around all that pasta!
Bam's Kitchen
Brilliant Linda. I am hosting a x-mas party and this will be perfect with a cup of coffee/tea and even I can eat it! Yeah!
Britney
Actually. I just cam back from Italy, and they had gluten free biscotti like this everywhere. It was lovely for my allergies. So, it’s not as blasphemous as you thought! You should try some while you are there. I’m going to try making these to see how they compare. Thank you for the recipe! I was missing Italy.
Alma Pretorius
Hi there
I noticed in your method, you say: ‘combine the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt’ …
I suppose you meant to leave out the word sugar, since you’re using dates for sweetness?
spicegirlfla
Thanks for catching that! You are correct, the dates are used for the sweetener!