Long before I hear the first Christmas music, long before the stores put up decorations, long before the Christmas ads appear in the paper, I’m in biscotti mode. I’m already thinking about the gift biscotti that I will make. There are dozens of recipes in my files and they are so good it’s hard to decide which flavors to make.

Cranberry pound cake with walnuts or almonds is an old favorite. The recipe was on a packet of dried cranberries that I bought years ago. Since then the recipe seems to have disappeared and I’m glad I still have it. The orange biscotti with mini chocolate chips is another family favorite. I adapted a basic biscotti recipe and added orange zest to bring out the orange flavor. and extract.

Baking biscotti is fun and if you’ve never done it I hope you’ll give it a try at least once. Make some for yourself and some to give as gifts. Why are biscotti a thoughtful gift?

First, you have hundreds of recipes to choose from. This means that you can customize the biscotti. Let’s say Aunt Edith loves chocolate. You can make chocolate chip biscotti for her. Uncle Fred might love almonds and you can make him almond biscotti.

Secondly, you can prepare this Italian “biscuit” in advance. Biscotti keeps for weeks, so if you want to stir up a batch weeks before Christmas, go ahead and do it. However, keep in mind that the flavor may fade a bit. I add an extra half teaspoon of extract to ensure a good flavor.

Third, the size can vary. Commercial biscotti tend to be five to six inches long. Homemade biscotti can be long, or you can make mini biscotti that fit on a saucer. The size you make also depends on the storage container.

Fourth, you can make holiday biscotti with colored sugar, multi-colored sprinkles, white chocolate drizzle, chocolate frosting, chocolate “shot,” or large sugar crystals. The sprinkles are the easiest, but I prefer to freeze my biscotti. Make sure the frosting has fully set before packaging the cookies. To speed up the set, I put the baked and glazed biscotti in the fridge for about 10 minutes.

Fifth, you can find beautiful containers for your beautiful gift. I’ve bought decorative jars at the grocery store, practical jars with wide-mouth lids at discount stores, and plastic containers at kitchen supply stores. Fill cookies with waxed paper if sending by mail. Include the recipe if you wish.

Sixth, a homemade gift says “I’m thinking of you.” The recipient can feel the love and care you put into your baking. Commercial biscotti are good, but homemade ones are better.

This year, instead of buying gift packaging, I’m repurposing tins from Italy that used to hold almond cookies. The tall red tins are festive and family members who receive the biscotti can use the tins to store cookies, biscuits, biscuits, and pasta. Stumped with Christmas presents? Bake up some biscotti for your loved ones and loved ones. Every sweet bite will remind them of you.

Copyright 2011 by Harriet Hodgson