Almond Biscotti

1. Preheat the oven to 350 F (180 C).
2. First, toast the almonds. If you want to use additional almonds to garnish, make sure to add more than the 1 cup needed for the biscotti. Place the almonds on a baking sheet in a single layer and place in the oven for about 8-10 minutes, stirring halfway through. Watch carefully as they can burn quickly!
3. Let the almonds cool slightly and then roughly chop.
4. Using an electric mixer, cream the softened butter and sugar until fluffy.
5. Add the eggs one at a time and mix well.
6. Mix in the almond extract.
7. In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt. Gradually add the flour mixture to the wet mixture and combine until smooth.
8. Fold in the chopped almonds. If you toasted extra almonds to garnish the biscotti, make sure to set them aside!
9. Drop spoonfuls of the dough onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. It will be quite sticky! Using well-floured hands, form the dough into a log approximately ½ inch (1.3 cm) tall.
10. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until slightly brown. Remove from the oven (but don’t turn off the oven).
11. Allow the log to cool for 10 minutes. Remove to a cutting board and cut into slices at an angle (approximately 1 inch or 2.5 cm thick).
12. Return the slices to the baking sheet, cut-side down. Bake an additional 7 minutes, flip over and bake for 7 minutes on the other side.
13. Allow the biscotti to sit for 10 minutes then remove to a wire rack to cool completely.

Chocolate Garnish

1. Pour the chocolate into a microwave safe bowl. Microwave the chocolate in 15 second increments. Once they begin to melt (it should take between 30-45 seconds), stir until the mixture becomes smooth.
2. When the biscotti have cooled, dip them in chocolate and sprinkle chopped almonds on top.