Vegan Chocolate Chip Biscotti with Nuts

These Vegan Chocolate Chip Biscotti with Nuts are so delicious and the recipe is so adaptable that they can be made either vegan or not.

My brother and his wife are Vegan, so when they come to visit I like to whip (well maybe not "whip up")  up a batch this Vegan Biscotti to serve with our morning or evening cup of coffee, much to their delight.

So if you are Vegan and have a craving for delicious chocolate chip biscotti, you certainly will enjoy this one because it has two kinds of nuts. It is egg-free and dairy-free yet has the delightful biscotti taste and texture.

These are good plain, but for the chocolate lovers among you, If you would like to turn them into a delectable double vegan chocolate chip biscotti I have a chocolate dipping sauce included at the end of the recipe.

VEGAN CHOCOLATE CHIP BISCOTTI WITH NUTS RECIPE

Ingredients:

• 1/3 cup non-hydrogenated Vegan margarine, softened (Like Earth Balance)
• 1/2 cup organic sugar, plus
• 2 tablespoons organic sugar
• 2 egg substitute (like Ener-G egg substitute)
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract or vanilla paste
• 1/4 teaspoon almond extract
• 1 1/2 cups unbleached all purpose flour
• 1/2 cup whole wheat pastry flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 cup Vegan semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 1/4 cup raw unsalted cashews, chopped
• 1/4 cup unsalted walnuts, chopped

Directions:

1. Position one of your oven racks in the center of your oven. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a nonstick baking liner and set aside.
2. In a bowl sift or whisk together flour and baking powder.
3. In another bowl beat margarine and sugar together until light and fluffy. Blend in the "eggs" and extracts.
4. Mix in the flour and baking soda.
5. Stir in the chocolate chips and nuts.
6. After mixing, scrape the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface and BRIEFLY knead it just until it comes together and the divide it in half. Shape each half into 1 inch logs and carefully transfer to prepared baking sheet.
7. Flatten the slabs slightly by evenly patting them down.
8. Place the baking sheet on the center rack of your oven and bake for about 25 minutes, or until they are golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
9. Remove from the oven and reduce the oven temperature to 275 degrees F.
10. Place the baking sheet on a wire rack and allow the logs to cool for 10-15 minutes, transfer to cutting board.
11. Using a serrated knife, cut the logs on a slight diagonal into 1/2-inch thick slices. Place sliced biscotti’s on their sides on an unlined baking sheet and bake for another 8-10 minutes until they are crisp and dry.
12. Store in air tight container to maintain freshness.

Adapted from Recipezaar and based on the book, "Vegan Planet."

Vegan chocolate sauce 

A great coating or dip for your biscotti. Be sure to store chocolate-coated cookies in the refrigerator to prevent chocolate from softening. 

From Williams Sonoma's cookbook, Cookies & Biscotti.

Yield: 3/4 cup

Ingredients:

• 8 oz sweet, semisweet or bittersweet chocolate, chopped
• 2 teaspoons vegetable shortening

Directions:

Combine the chocolate and shortening in the top pan of a double boiler. Melt over (not touching) simmering water just until smooth, stirring occasionally. Remove from the heat. Alternately, melt the chocolate and shortening in a heatproof bowl placed over (not touching) simmering water.

To coat cookie tops chocolate:

1. Dip the tops in the hot chocolate or, using a small icing spatula or a table knife, spread the chocolate over the tops. Set the cookies, chocolate sides up, on a baking sheet lined with wax paper. 
2. To coat cookies decoratively, dip one end of each cookie in the chocolate. Set on a baking sheet lined with wax paper.
3. To drizzle the chocolate decoratively over cookies, dip the tines of a fork in the chocolate and wave back and forth over the cookies.
4. For a more controlled drizzle, spoon warm chocolate into a zip lock bag, nip off one corner and use like a cake decorating  bag to drizzle
5. To create a cookie sandwich, spread the chocolate over the flat side of one cookie. Top with a second cookie, flat side down.

Refrigerate all chocolate-coated cookies until the chocolate sets.