Coffee-Macadamia Nut Biscotti

One my souvenirs from my trip to Maui were macadamia nuts still in the shell.  I've had some difficulty deciding what to do with them since I don't have very many, and it's not like I can run to the store and buy some more.  I found a recipe for Coffee-Macadamia Nut Biscotti on foodnetwork.com that looked interesting so I printed out the recipe, grabbed some nuts, a hammer, and headed for the front porch to get comfy on the cement steps.  

Macadamia nut shells are hard (really, really, really hard) and you need an even harder surface to work with.  And a hammer -- trust me, there is not a nutcracker in this world that's gonna pop these shells.  It took me several minutes, and a few curse words after smashing my fingers a couple of times with the hammer.  I've never made biscotti before but the directions didn't seem too difficult so I forged ahead.  Along with the obvious ingredients, this recipe called for coffee grounds, ground cinnamon, and unsweetened cocoa powder.  

The recipe also called for three eggs, but I only had two in the fridge.  Oops!  Maybe that's why my dough looked like this! 

Luckily, with some pressing and patting I managed to coax the dough into the required 3"x8" loafs. 

25 minutes later my house smelled fantastic, and I pulled these lovelies out of the oven, cut them into slices, and popped them back in the oven to finish baking.

Looks like biscotti to me!

After the biscotti cooled, I melted some white chocolate in a double boiler.  The recipe called for shredded coconut to top the white chocolate but I decided to omit that part.   

The biscotti came out great!  Crunchy, sweet, and I really liked the coffee, cinnamon, and cocoa flavor.  They make my daily cup of coffee an extra special treat, especially when I get to sit on my deck on a sunny afternoon, and enjoy my garden.   

Coffee Macadamia Nut Biscotti
foodnetwork.com

2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup ground coffee
1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 cup sugar
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/4 cup honey
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 large eggs
3/4 cup macadamia nuts, roughly chopped
1 12 ounce bag white chocolate chips
2 1/2 cups sweetened shredded coconut, toasted

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.  Whisk the flour, coffee grounds, cocoa powder, baking soda and cinnamon in a medium bowl.  Combine sugar, butter, honey, vanilla and eggs in a large bowl with a mixer on medium-high speed.  Reduce the mixer speed to low; beat in the flour mixture until just combined.  Stir in the macadamia nuts with a wooden spoon.

Form the dough into two 3x8 inch logs on the prepared baking sheet, about 3 inches apart.  Bake until browned, about 25 minutes.  Let cool 10 minutes, then transfer to a cutting board.  Cut into 1/2 inch thick slices using a serrated knife.

Reduce the oven temperature to 350 degrees.  Arrange the slices cut-side down on the baking sheet, and return to oven to bake for 20 more minutes, flipping cookies halfway through.  Let cool 10 minutes on the baking sheets, then transfer to racks to cool completely.

Melt the white chocolate chips in a heatproof bowl set over a saucepan of simmering water (do not let the bowl touch the water, stirring until smooth.  Dip the biscotti partway into the melted chocolate, then roll in the coconut.  Place on a baking sheet lined with fresh parchment, and refrigerate until set -- about 30 minutes.