Host Gift Part 2: Coconut Gingerbread Biscotti

Magic happened in my dirty-sink-filled kitchen last night. I have a pet peeve that I must confess, I hate having things in my kitchen that I'm not using. Sure, I can stock up on canned items or dried grains, but baking items, chocolate, extract, food dye - I gotta use! A month ago, my obsession with unsweetened coconut drove me to buying a whole bag-full at W-overpriced Foods. Since then, I've snuck coconut into just about anything sweet - HELLO! However, putting coconut and a little coconut extract in biscotti was genius! It sweetened the spicy ginger zing and gave the texture a little more crumbly crunch. Note: if you love a little crunch, or something to dip in your coffee, these biscotti are for you. They are so good that Grant Park posted on Facebook before I had the chance to share the recipe. 

In a few words - seasonal, crunchy, delish - coconut gingerbread biscotti.

Ingredients:

1 c. whole wheat flour

1 c. all purpose flour

1/3 c. organic sugar (raw sugar gives the biscotti a grainy sweetness and caramelizes the outside)

1/4 c. maple syrup

¼ c. unsweetened flaked coconut

1 ½ Tbs. molasses

2 1/2 tsp. heaping ground ginger

½ tsp. cinnamon

¼ tsp. nutmeg

¼ tsp. ground cloves

½ tsp. vanilla extract

¼ tsp. coconut extract

¾ tsp. baking soda

1 ½ Tbs. egg replacer (Ener-G, ground flax, or cage free egg)

6 Tbs. water (omit if using a real egg)

1-4 Tbs. additional water

Directions:

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees F and grease cookie sheet.

2. Mix egg replacer and water, set aside.

3. In a medium bowl combine flour, sugar, coconut, spices and baking soda. Gently mix.

4. Add maple syrup, molasses, extracts and egg (replacer). It will be dry, but do your best to combine ingredients.

5. If there is excess flour, add 1 Tbs. water at a time. Be conservative, you want the dough to just stick together. Get your hands in there if a spoon isn't doing the trick. (And, if you add too much water, just add a dash more of flour).

6. On a floured surface, place dough and form into two small loaves about 2 inches wide. 

7. Place loaves on baking sheet, and into oven for 30 minutes.

8. Take cookie sheet out of oven, let sit for 10 minutes.

9. Slice each loaf on a diagonal with your sharpest knife. Make sure slices are thick enough (about 1 inch) so the biscotti does not crumble.

10. Return slices to sheet. Bake for 10 minutes.

11. Turn over slices and bake another 10 minutes.

12. Remove from oven and allow to cool. Place in a container - not too airtight and let them dry out a bit. 

* Recipe makes 24 biscotti. Each is about 68 calories.

**Inspiration provided by Fat Free Vegan. Love her recipes and candor.