It’s December and I’m a little upset as to how this happened. Where did my November go and why does time keep going faster than I can keep up? I already know that I will not have time to do EVERYTHING I love to do, so I must settle with a few personal favorites.

This Candy Cane biscotti is so much fun. I like making a cookie that is a little extra special to make an impression. These tastes as yummy as they look! Do not let the twice bake thing throw you off, they are still easy to make. I  make up the dough logs and keep them in freezer to pull out one at a time to bake off when I want them.

They are great treats to package up in bags with ribbon to give out with hot chocolate, tea or coffee. They dunk awesome in all three!  You can even melt some chocolate and dip the ends in it as well, to give a little more decorative affect.

Let me encourage you, if you find your self overwhelmed as to how you’re going to pull off Christmas and all the expectations….make up your mind NOW what you want to do and leave the rest go for this year. Don’t stress yourself out. This time of year, is to be ENJOYED, and savored!

Happy Biscotti making!

Candy Cane Biscotti

2/3 cup soft butter

1 1/3 cup sugar

1 tablespoon baking powder

Pinch salt

4 eggs

4 drops peppermint essential oil (or ½ tsp peppermint extract)

4 cups all-purpose flour

1 ½ cups semi-sweet chocolate chips

½ cup crushed candy canes

2 tablespoons flour (for rolling the logs out)

1.Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy

2. Add eggs and mix, scraping down the sides of the bowl’
3. Add extract/oil, salt, baking powder and flour. It will become very stiff, that’s normal!
4. Divide the dough into half’s in 2 separate bowls
5. Melt chocolate chips in microwave and then mix into one of the halves, set aside
6. The other half, mix in the crushed candy canes
7. On floured surface, roll each dough into logs about 1 ½ inches wide. If the log is too long for you, make it into 2 logs.
8. Take a log of each and twist them, like a rope and then flatten them on a baking sheet.
9. Bake 375 for 15-18 minutes until the log does not feel wet or real soft. (firm to the touch)
10. Cool the log for 15-20 minutes, then cut the logs with sharp knife into stripes (1-inch-thick) and then put back into the oven 325 for 10 minutes to get the second bake. I personally do not like them real hard. So adjust the baking time for the second bake to your liking! J

Enjoy!