I’ve railed against dry biscuits before, and I’m going to do it again. Cantucci (the Tuscan name for biscotti) are typically served with vin santo for dessert. They’re meant to be politely dipped into a little beaker of dessert wine before taking a bite of the crunchy biscuit. I prefer to dunk mine, let them sit in the vin santo until the parched biscuit has been fully saturated, thereby reducing the need to conjure up gallons of my own saliva to break them down, and then consume.
Don’t get me wrong – I don't totally despise biscotti/cantucci, I just prefer something with a little more succulence, a bit of chewiness mixed in with the crunch, that can stand on its own without its (albeit delicious) alcoholic companion.
I tend to chuck in whatever nut or dried fruit we have available, and this particular combo worked out exceptionally well: the tanginess and chew from the oranges, the toasty crunch of the hazelnuts, and the plump, wine-soaked sweetness from the figs. I try not to overcook them so as to retain some of that satisfying chewiness.
I’d strongly recommend making the orange peel yourself - the store-bought versions are overly sweet and artificial tasting. When I made my own for the first time, it was a revelation and now I can’t go back.
These also last beautifully for up to 3 weeks if stored in an airtight container (and can also be kept frozen for up to 3 months in an airtight container).
Ingredients
Filling
For the candied peel:
3 medium oranges
185ml water
150g caster sugar
Or, if you have to use store-bought peel, sub in 150g candied orange peel + 2 tbsp honey
250g dried figs
125ml vin santo/moscato/any other dessert wine
Biscuits
500g plain flour
1 tbsp baking powder
325g caster sugar
¾ tsp salt
3 eggs & 1 egg white, + 1 egg yolk for brushing the biscuits
100g roasted hazelnuts, roughly chopped into halves or slightly smaller pieces
2 large trays lined with baking parchment
Method
Candied orange peel method
1) Slice the peel off the oranges with a knife in thick strips, cutting close to the flesh. It does not matter if there is a little white left on the strip. Slice the strips into 0.5 cm wide and, roughly, 2cm long strips.
2) Pour water and sugar in a medium sized pot over a high heat and stir until sugar dissolved. Then reduce the heat to medium, add in the sliced orange peel, and simmer for about 25-30 minutes until the liquid is slightly viscose (i.e. maple syrup – like) and the orange peel is translucent and lacking the bitterness of its fresh state.
3) Use a slotted spoon to remove the orange slices from the syrup and allow to cool. Reserve the syrup to use in the biscuit mixture.
4) Once the peel is cool, roughly chop it in smaller, 1cm long pieces.
Preparing the figs
1) Into a small sauce pan on a medium heat, add the dried figs and the dessert wine. Simmer for 5 minutes until the figs are plump, and then take off the heat and allow to cool as you prepare the biscuit mixture.
Biscuit method
1) Preheat oven to 180C. Into a large bowl pour flour, baking powder, sugar, salt and roasted hazelnuts. Mix together until evenly distributed.
2) In a separate bowl separate one egg and place the yolk aside for later use. Whisk together the 3 whole eggs, the egg white of one egg, 2 tbsp of the orange syrup (or 2 tbsp honey if you are using store bought) and 3 tbsp of the dessert wine that the figs were cooked in (NB if they have absorbed more and there is less than this remaining in the pan, top it up with more from the bottle).
3) Take the now cooled figs from the pan and slice into 1cm long pieces (roughly 8ths). Then stir the figs and candied orange pieces into the liquid.
4) Pour the liquid mixture into the dry ingredients and stir until fully combined into a sticky and slightly stiff dough.
5) Dust a clean surface/ wooden board with flour and spoon 1/6 of the mixture onto it. Coat your hands in flour and roll the dough out into a 5cm wide log. Place on the tray. Repeat with the rest of mixture, leaving a large space at least 10cm distance between each piece since it will spread whilst cooking.
6) Bake for 20 minutes or until deep golden brown. With knife at the ready, take them out and slice diagonally into 3 cm widths and turn them so they’re cut side up. Turn off the oven and place the biscuits back in to dry out for another 10 minutes. Or just leave them in until ready to serve.
