cookie calendar - day 4: cranberry orange biscotti

I'm so excited to share this recipe because not only do I love biscotti but I also love the fact that it's from a food truck owner!

If you're a regular reader of kitchen frolic, or spend any time with me on Twitter, than you know that I'm a big supporter of food trucks and pop-ups. I love supporting these amazing entrepreneurs so when The Canuck Pizza Truck asked if they could join in the Cookie Advent Calendar I was more than happy to sign them up!

I'll definitely be keeping an eye out for this particular food truck when I'm in Niagara next year!

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guest post by Christine from Canuck Pizza Truck

Riding down the road less travelled, the Canuck Pizza Truck is all about taste, tradition and making memories. The Canuck Pizza Truck - a vintage 1946 former dump truck - can be found cooking up authentic wood fired pizza and artisanal breads in its 3,000 pound clay oven in Niagara wine country. Canuck Pizza Truck owners Ted and Christine Lafleur and their sons Emile and Andre put the truck together the same way they cook – from scratch. They took the best they could find and made magic so that could share great culinary experiences with the great people they encounter on the road of life.

Every holiday season Christine teaches anyone who wants to learn how to make some of the best biscotti you’ll ever savour. It’s all a part of tradition and keeping what great in this world rolling on. Check out the Canuck Pizza Truck this spring when it comes out of its winter hibernation. 

@CanuckPizzaTruc on Twitter.

cranberry orange biscotti

Makes about 40 individual  biscotti cookies

Bake at 325 F about 30 – 35 minutes til golden – then cut and rebake at 250 F for 30 to 40 minutes

1 1/3 cups granulated sugar

2/3 cup butter – softened

4 tablespoons vegetable oil

4 eggs

3 tsp vanilla

4 cups unbleached all purpose flour

4 tsp baking powder

1 tsp salt

2 cups white chocolate chips

1.5 cups dried cranberries

Zest of one vallencia orange and about 2- 3 tablespoons of juice squeezed from the orange

In bowl beat together sugar and butter til fluffy – add eggs and oil and then vanilla – beat thoroughly til all blended. Add flour, baking powder and salt and beat til mixed. Stir in white chocolate chips, cranberries and zest  as well as orange juice.  Turn dough onto a floured surface. Add flour to your hands and form – three to four logs – depends how big you want to make them. For novice biscotti bakers we recommend making more but smaller logs as the larger the biscotti logs and cookie slices the harder they are to handle. So until you go pro go smaller and  avoid potential breakage.

Use parchment paper to shape logs and to bake on. Once logs are formed lift them using parchment paper onto baking surface- we prefer to use clay pans if you have them. Bake at 325 for about 30-35 minutes or til golden and firm. Take out of oven let cool to slightly warm and using a sharp clean knife cut the logs to make a one inch cookie. Flip the cookies on their side and rebake for a second time at 250 for about 30 to 40 minutes or until golden firm and dry. Enjoy!!!

The recipe and all photos used in this blog post belong to Christina Lafleur / Canuck Pizza Truck and should not be reprinted without their express permission.