Eggless Biscotti Recipe
Dec 14, 2023
This Eggless Biscotti is crunchy, crispy and perfect to dunk in your hot chocolate or coffee. Made with basic ingredients, this is a great cookie to bake for Christmas!
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Get into the holiday spirit with these easy to make Eggless Biscotti. These crunchy biscotti are so addictive and great to enjoy with your cup of coffee or hot chocolate. You can also bake these for your friends and family during the holidays. You only need a handful of ingredients to make these and they can also be easily made vegan.
Table of Contents
I know people in the US have a love-hate relationship with biscotti. Some people love it and for some it’s just too hard and crunchy. I come from a country where I grew up eating crunch biscuits/cookies. For example, rusk has been a part of chai time ever since I can remember, so were the crispy jeera biscuits and atta cookies. Rusk especially resembles biscotti in so many ways. Just like biscotti, they are also double baked and taste best when dipped in chai or coffee.
I am definitely team biscotti because I love crunchy cookies. Making biscotti at home is easier than you think. And if you have an egg allergy or don’t eat eggs for religious reasons, then I have the perfect eggless biscotti recipe for you. This recipe only needs a few ingredients and you can easily make this at home.
Biscotti makes a great cookie to bake and give to your family and friends during the holidays. They last long, don’t break and so they are great for shipping as well. And you can customize them in so many different ways. The flavor options are endless (see below).
Recipe Testing
I tested this recipe quite a few times. The first time I made it with oil. And while it tasted okay, I definitely missed that buttery flavor. So, I swapped butter for the next batch and it was definitely better. However, I felt like I added too much of the flaxseed meal in the recipe.
The flaxseed meal is one of those things which you can definitely do without in this recipe but it helps in binding the dough. Since we don’t have eggs here I prefer something to hold the dough together and the flaxseed meal does that job perfectly. For the next batch, I reduced the amount of flaxseed meal and voila I had the perfect Eggless Biscotti recipe to share with you guys!
Ingredients Required
- All purpose flour: If you wish, you can replace half of the all purpose flour with whole wheat flour. The biscotti made with all purpose flour definitely has a lighter texture.
- Butter: For this eggless biscotti recipe, I have used salted butter but you can use unsalted butter as well. If using unsalted butter, make sure to add around 1/2 teaspoon of salt in the recipe.
- Flaxseed meal: This acts as a substitute for egg and helps in binding the dough together. You can also use chia seeds in place of flax meal and follow the same steps. You can buy flaxseed meal at grocery stores or if you have flaxseeds, just grind them using a spice grinder and that’s your flax meal.
- Vanilla extract: For a basic biscotti recipe, I have used vanilla extract but some almond extract would also be good here. Just be careful with the amount of almond extract that you add since it can be a little potent.
- Nuts: Almonds are common in biscotti and so that’s what I have used. But cashews, hazelnuts, walnuts will also be nice.
How to Make Eggless Biscotti
- In a bowl mix together 2 cups of all purpose flour (260 grams), 1 teaspoon baking powder and 1/8 teaspoon of salt. I would recommend adding 1/2 teaspoon of salt if you are using unsalted butter in this recipe. Since I am using salted butter, I only added 1/8 teaspoon. Set this aside. Preheat the oven to 350 F degrees and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Meanwhile, toast 3/4 cup of almonds in a pan for 7 to 8 minutes until they are fragrant and toasted. Stir regularly so that they don’t burn. Remove the almonds from the pan and let them cool down and then pulse using a food processor. Pulse only 2 to 3 times since we want relatively large almond pieces here. Do not pulse the almond too much else you will be left with almond powder or very small almond pieces. Set this aside as well.
- To a small bowl add 1 tablespoon of flaxseed meal and then add 2 tablespoons of water to it. Stir and leave it for around 5 minutes for the flaxseed meal to absorb all the water and become like this gelatinous egg-like mixture. With the flaxseed meal, I used 2 tablespoons of water to attain the egg like texture, you might need to add more. Set aside.
- To the steel bowl of your stand mixer (or use your hand mixer), add 5 tablespoons butter (71 grams). I used salted butter. To that now add 2/3 cup granulated white sugar (134 grams). Using the paddle attachment, beat on medium speed for around 2 minutes until the butter and sugar is well combined.
- Now add the prepared flax “egg” along with 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract and mix until combined. You can also add 1/2 teaspoon of almond extract if you like along with the vanilla.
- Add the flour mixture and mix. Start on low speed while mixing in the flour (so that it doesn’t scatter all over) and then increase the speed gradually.
- Then add 3/4 cup of the toasted and chopped almonds and stir.
- Add 3 to 4 tablespoons of milk (as needed) to bring the dough together. I would start with 2 tablespoons and add more if needed. Your dough is now done.
- Divide the dough into 2 equal parts. Now roll and shape each part into a log, around 8 to 9 inches in length. If the dough is breaking while rolling, just keep pressing it and bringing it together while rolling.
- Transfer the logs onto the prepared baking sheet. Press with your fingers and make the logs around 2 inches wide. Bake at 350 F degrees for about 30 minutes. Remove the pan from the oven and let this cool completely, around 30 minutes. If you try to slice it before it has cooled down, it will crumble.
- Once the logs have cooled down, slice each log into 1-inch slices using a serrated knife.
- Place the cut slices into the baking sheet with cut the side facing up and bake at 350 F degrees for 10 to 12 minutes. Then take the pan out of the oven, flip the biscotti and bake the other side for 10 to 12 minutes as well (I baked a total of 24 minutes but each oven is different). The center might be soft to touch at this point but will continue to harden as the biscotti cools. Transfer onto a wire rack to cool completely. Drizzle with chocolate if desired and then store biscotti in an airtight container.
Storage
Let the biscotti cool completely and then store in an airtight container. It should be good for 2 weeks at room temperature. I would recommend skipping the chocolate drizzle for a longer shelf life.
You can also freeze the biscotti and then it will last a couple of months.
How To Make It Vegan?
This biscotti recipe can very easily be made vegan. Replace the butter with vegan butter. And replace the milk with a non-dairy milk like almond milk or soy milk. The rest of the recipe remains the same. If you want to drizzle the chocolate on top, make sure the chocolate is vegan.
Baking Time
Every oven is different and so the second bake time might be different for everyone. I recommend starting with around 9 minutes on each side, for a total of 18 minutes. My second bake was 12 minutes on each side.
Make sure to not overbake else it will be too crunchy. The center might be soft to touch when you take the biscotti out of the oven but will continue to harden as it cools. If your biscotti is soft after it has cooled, place it in the oven and bake for more time.
Flavor Options
The good part about this recipe is that you can make so many variations of it.
- Chocolate Chip Biscotti: add 3/4 cup of chocolate chips to the dough.
- Orange Cardamom Biscotti: add 3/4 teaspoon cardamom powder and then zest of 2 medium oranges to the dough. You can skip the almonds to keep it plain.
- Pistachio Cranberry Biscotti: this combination is popular around the holidays. Add 1/2 cup pistachios and 1/2 cup dried cranberries to the dough.
And there’s so much more! You can add different spices, flavor and make countless variations using the same base eggless biscotti recipe.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, you can use cashews, pistachios, walnuts in place of the almonds. Make sure to toast it first in a pan or in the oven.
You can make this recipe without flaxseed meal. Use more milk to bring the dough together. However, I recommend using the flaxseed meal, it helps in binding the dough together and makes it easier to work with the dough.
Since we haven’t used eggs, the dough might be a little difficult to shape. Try to press the dough if it breaks and roll again. If you can’t roll, just shape it by pressing with your hands.
It just means that it needed more time in the oven. Preheat the oven to 350 F degrees and and put the biscotti bake in the oven. Bake for 3 to 5 minutes, then flip the biscotti and bake again for 3 to 5 minutes.
I have not tried making this gluten free but if you want, you can try with the 1:1 gluten free flour.
Eggless Biscotti
Ingredients
- 2 cups all purpose flour 260 grams
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/8 teaspoon salt use 1/2 teaspoon salt if using unsalted butter
- 5 tablespoons butter 71 grams, I used salted butter at room temperature
- 2/3 cup granulated white sugar 134 grams
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 tablespoon flaxseed meal mixed with 2 tablespoons water
- 3/4 cup almonds toasted and then chopped using a food processor
- 3 to 4 tablespoons milk 45-60 ml, as needed, I used whole milk
Instructions
- Mix flour, baking powder and salt into a bowl and set aside. Preheat the oven to 350 F degrees and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. Toast the almonds in a pan (or you can also use an oven) for 7 to 8 minutes stirring often until they are fragrant and toasted. Let them cool down and then pulse into large pieces using a food processor. You don't want a almond powder.
- To make the flax "egg", combined 1 tablespoon flax meal with 2 tablespoons water. Stir and then let it sit for 5 minutes. After 5 minutes, stir the mixture and you will have gelatinous egg-like mixture ready. Set aside.
- Add butter (room temperature) and sugar to the steel bowl of your stand mixer (or use a hand mixer) and beat using the paddle attachment for around 2 minutes until well combined.
- Now add the prepared flax "egg" along with the vanilla extract and mix until combined. Then add the flour mixture and mix until combined. Add the toasted almonds and mix.
- Then start adding milk, 1 tablespoon at a time until the dough comes together. You would need around 3 to 4 tablespoons of milk to bring the dough together. Now divide the dough into 2 equal parts.
- Shape each part into a log around 8 to 9-inches in length. Transfer the logs onto the baking sheet. Press with your hands to make them around 2 inches wide. Bake at 350 F degrees for 30 to 35 minutes. Then take the logs out of the oven and let them cool completely. Don't try to slice them while they are warm else they will crumble.
- Once the logs have cooled down, slice each log into 1-inch slices using a serrated knife. Place the cut slices into the baking sheet with cut the side facing up and bake at 350 F degrees for 10 to 12 minutes. Then take the pan out of the oven, flip the biscotti and bake the other side for 10 to 12 minutes as well. Each oven is different so you might need more or less time to achieve the desired texture.
- The center might be soft to touch at this point but will continue to harden as the biscotti cools. Transfer onto a wire rack to cool completely. Drizzle with chocolate (dark chocolate, milk chocolate or white chocolate) if desired and then store biscotti in an airtight container.
Notes
- Don’t try to slice the biscotti logs if they have not cooled down to room temperature. The dough will crumble. Let it cool completely and only then slice using a serrated knife.
- For the second bake, do around 9 to 10 minutes on each side and go from there. Add extra minutes if the biscotti is soft to touch after it has cooled down. I baked each side for 12 minutes each.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
I ended up using 5-6 tablespoons of milk because the dough wouldn’t stick together and they turned out great!
hmm did you use a stand mixer? it didn’t take me that any tablespoons of milk. Glad it worked out though!