Cinnamon Vanilla Biscotti - OwlbBaking.com (2024)

This Cinnamon & vanilla biscotti recipe is packed with cinnamon flavor, vanilla richness and has a light and butterycrunch but softer center. This is an easy cookie recipe and makes a great sidekick to a cappuccino!

Making biscotti is very near and dear to me. It was one of the first cookies I made on my own! Once I mastered my recipe, I began making them all the time. They are still my favorite cookie to make for two reasons:

1. Biscotti are the easiest cookies to make. Once the dough comes together you form it into a log, bake and then slice. Since you don't have to scoop out dough into individual cookies, you can whip up a batch of biscotti FAST.
2. Once you master making basic biscotti, you can get creative with flavors and add-ins. You guys know how much I love adding my own twist on things, and biscotti is so versatile! Don't like nuts? Make biscotti without nuts! Add in spices, chocolate chips, dried fruit, extracts...It's so great being able to throw in whatever you have in your pantry.

Bonus reason: Biscotti are never too sweet, which make them good for snacking all times of day.

...oh wait! Also, Biscotti are a one bowl recipe. And you only need one cookie tray.

If you read my post for Lemon Biscotti, you know that I'm not a fan of rock hard, break your teeth cookies, which is how most store-bought biscotti is. In my opinion, biscotti is too hard! I might be nontraditional on this matter, but that's the way I've always felt about it. This recipe gives you a beautiful light crunch but softer center. It's still dunk-able without falling apart, I promise!

Biscotti are the perfect make-ahead cookie

Did you know, that biscotti originated in Italy for the purpose of having a long shelf life? Because the cookie is baked twice and very dry, they lasted a long time and became a staple for travelling long distances (those Romans were all over the place!). For us in our modern world, we don't necessarily have to make them so dry for the purpose of storage.

Can you freeze biscotti? YES! I do it all the time; they hold up great. Once you're finished baking them off, place them in a heavy duty freezer bag and they can be frozen for up to 3 months.

How to Make Biscotti

Like I said, making homemade biscotti is super easy. I love the homemade look of these cookies. You can make them big, make them small, they're always beautiful!

Here are the essential steps:

Mix the dough and form in big fat log.

Begin to shape the dough and carefully stretch it longer and thinner. I usually stretch it the whole length of the tray.

I recommend cutting the dough into two smaller logs at this point. It's usually easier to fit on the tray. Then, flatten down both sections of dough to about ½ inch thickness.

After you've pushed the dough down flat, go along the edges and use your hands to straighten up the edges.

Bake it off until golden brown on the edges; the center should also be on the firm side. That's how you know it's done. (I cant tell you how good this cinnamon vanilla biscotti smelled while baking!)

Allow to cool for about 10 minutes; using a serrated knife, slice into diagonal pieces (about 1 inch in width each, I usually make them a bit thicker than that though!)

As you can see from the photo below, the bottom edge should be a light golden brown. The inside should still be fluffy, soft and cakey.

Lay the pieces on the tray with the side facing up, throw them back in the oven for a quick bake. Now, the second bake is where the crispity crunch of biscotti happens. I have found that dropping the temperature and baking each side for 10 minutes gives me the perfect texture (the whole cookie is firm, has crisp edges but the center is still on the softer side). If you prefer a crunchier cookie, absolutely feel free to bake them for longer!!

Let's quick talk about this Cinnamon Vanilla Biscotti version

Like I mentioned earlier, biscotti is so wonderful because you can let your flavor-imagination run wild. When I was thinking about what flavor to make, I chose Cinnamon Vanilla because I wanted to make sure you guys had a reliable recipe for serving with coffee & tea. The punch of cinnamon pairs perfectly with coffee, black tea & earl grey. Extra vanilla makes these sweet without adding more sugar.

This cookie is packed with a ton of cinnamon and extra vanilla extract that gives it a very creamy flavor. It actually reminds me of streusel, cinnamon roll or coffee cake. The warmth of the cinnamon and smooth drizzle of glaze is absolutely fabulous. I really enjoyed having this with my morning coffee! I hope you love this recipe!

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