Cinnamon Sugar Biscotti

After the chocolate biscotti came together really easily and was successfully baking in the oven, I decided it was safe to take on a second flavor in one night. I have a lot of coworkers, so I wanted to make sure that there was a decent amount of biscotti to go around.

For batch #2, I turned to something completely different--cinnamon sugar biscotti. Cinnamon sugar anything just might be my favorite in the whole wide world. I'm just sayin'.

And these were a cinnamon sugar hit. Hello, gorgeous. Crunchy, sweet, spicy--perfection.

This morning, I walked into my office armed with dozens of biscotti cookies. As the new girl, I aimed to please. And let's just say...

I came.
I saw.
I conquered.

Things I learned during this baking venture:

1. Biscotti is really easy to make. It requires a lot of baking time when compared to other "cookies," but the dough comes together quickly and there is not any part of the process that is hard.
2. Biscotti is apparently impressive. People could not believe that I made it at home. Sometimes, I confessed to how easy it is; other times, I continued to let them be impressed. :) A girl can't reveal all of her secrets!
3. My coworkers love biscotti. Rumors spread that there was biscotti in the kitchen before I could even get them all laid out on the plates. After I sent out an e-mail, there was a mad rush to the kitchen. Well before lunchtime, all that remained of the biscotti? Crumbs. Lots and lots of crumbs. Which leads me to my last point...
4. Biscotti is MESSY. Crunchy = crumbly. Be prepared to get crumbs everywhere! It's worth it, though, and shouldn't be a problem unless you don't own a vacuum cleaner. Or a broom.

Both the chocolate and cinnamon sugar flavors were awesome, but in different ways. I highly recommend that you choose one (or both) and make these for someone very, very soon. You'll knock their socks off!

Cinnamon Sugar Biscotti
(Source: Joy the Baker)

Ingredients:
- 2 cups flour
- 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 6 Tablespoons (3/4 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 1 egg
- 1 egg yolk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla

For topping:
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 beaten egg (for brushing biscotti before baking) - I just used the egg white discarded from using the extra egg yolk in the biscotti dough. No sense in wasting another egg!

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F and arrange two baking racks in the upper portion of the oven. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.

2. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, cinnamon, baking powder and salt. Set aside.

3. In a small bowl, also whisk together the cinnamon and sugar for the topping and set aside.

4. In the bowl of a stand mixer, fit with a paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 4 minutes. Scrape down the down and beat in the egg followed by the egg yolk. Beat in the vanilla extract.

5. Add the dry ingredients to the creamed butter all at once. With the mixer or just with a spatula, bring all of the ingredients together until a somewhat stiff dough is formed.

6. Divide the dough in two on the two making sheets. Shape each half of dough into a 9-inch long and 1 1/2-inch wide log. Brush with the beaten egg and sprinkle very generously with cinnamon sugar. Bake the two sheets on two different racks in the oven for 20 minutes. Rotate the cookie sheets for even baking and bake for 20-25 more minutes until golden and firm to the touch.

7. Remove from the oven but keep the oven on. Let biscotti cool until able to handle. Using a serrated knife, cut logs into 1/2-inch wide diagonal slices. Place biscotti cut side down on baking sheet and sprinkle with more cinnamon sugar. Bake again until pale golden, about 10-15 minutes.

8. Store in an airtight container for up to one week.