Nut & Seed Biscotti

As part of another little project I'm in the middle of, M and I hosted an Italian night for our friends; lots of red wine, antipasti, bread and all followed by coffee and biscotti. I thought about making almond biscotti as it's a bit more traditional. I have a very good recipe for almond basil biscotti with a hint of lemon. It's wonderful dipped in vanilla or amaretto cream.

As it was, I was in the mood for something a little more savoury. These fit the bill just right. It's basically a vehicle for nuts and seeds, just enough flour and egg to hold it all together.

This time I used shelled pistachios, poppy seeds, sunflower seeds, linseeds, hemp seeds, pecans and whole almonds. Any mix works well though, so go with your own preferences or what you have on store.

1 1/3 cup flour

2 cups mixed nuts and seeds

1/2 tsp salt

2 eggs

2/3 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup oil

Preheat 300/155/gas 2. Grease and line a 1lb loaf tin.

Combine flour, nuts/seeds and salt. Whisk together eggs and sugar.

Combine flour mix into egg and sugar. Scoop into loaf pan. Bake 45-50 minutes.

Remove from pan right away. Turn oven up to 425/220/gas 7.

Slice loaf thinly whilst hot. Brush one side of each slice with oil. Bake 3-4 minutes. Turn over, brush other side with oil and bake until crisp. Let cool.

Alternatively, after brushing with oil, you can put the slices under the grill until crisp and browned.

Almond Butter Cookies

I'm not sure why I ever think trying to detox is a good idea but every once in a while I think, why not? let's give it a go and see how it feels. No matter what though, every time I end up feeling horrible and have to quit early.

This last time I thought it would be a good idea I ended up making my own almond butter, which is generally allowed during a light detox. After I quit and was allowed actual food again, I thought it would be a good idea to make cookies out of the remaining almond butter.

I took a regular peanut butter cookie recipe and just substituted the almond butter for peanut butter. Simple really. I left the almonds to roast in the oven a but too long originally so the cookies were quite smoky. Other than that, they were amazing. Chewy and nutty and buttery.

2 cups whole wheat flour

1 tsp baking soda

3/4 tsp salt

1 cup almond butter

1 cup maple syrup

1/3 cup olive oil

1 1/2 tsp vanilla

Preheat oven to 350F/gas 5

Combine flour, baking soda and salt. Mix together almond butter, maple syrup, olive oil and vanilla.

Mix dry and wet together. Don't overmix, leave the batter a little dusty. Let sit 5 minutes. Stir together once more.

Drop by teaspoonfulls onto baking sheet. Press down slightly with the back of a floured fork (don't press too hard, it will be sticky). Bake 10 minutes or until golden. Make sure you don't overbake, they will be really dry if you do.