Cranberry and orange biscotti

These Italian-style fruit and nut biscotti are delectable.

Little biscuits flavoured with ripe, sweet berries, they are a wonderful accompaniment to creamy, fruity summer puddings.

However, I like biscotti best as a treat (almost guilt-free); a little sweet something to have with coffee.

Wrapped in cellophane and tied with a ribbon, biscotti is a lovely foodie gift.

This is a straightforward recipe and it always works. It is fairly quick to prepare, although it is twice baked.

These keep well as I discovered quite by accident when I was doing the first testing for this recipe.

I packed the biscuits carefully into an airtight container and then forgot about them for about three months - they were still crisp and delicious.

Makes 50

220 g standard flour

½ tsp baking soda

¾ tsp ground cinnamon

150 g caster sugar

120g dried cranberries

100g whole-skin on almonds, roughly chopped

2 large eggs, size 7, lightly beaten

Grated zest of 1 large orange

1-3 Tbsp Cointreau, other orange liqueur or orange juice

Method

Preheat the oven to 160degC. Line a baking tray with non-stick baking paper.

Sift together the flour, baking soda and cinnamon in a large bowl. Stir in the sugar, cranberries and almonds.

Combine the beaten egg and orange zest and stir into the dry ingredients. Mix with a fork until most of the dry ingredients are incorporated into the egg mixture. Then mix with well-floured hands until well combined.

Turn the dough out on to a lightly floured surface and with floured hands knead lightly until it holds together well. Divide the dough into three equal portions and form each into logs 14cm long.

Place the logs well apart on the lined baking tray and bake for 35-40 minutes until firm and lightly golden. The logs flatten quite a lot during baking.

Remove from the oven and cool for 10-15 minutes on a tray. If too cold, the almonds do not slice well but if too warm, the biscotti is inclined to crumble. Transfer to a cutting board and using a serrated knife, slice on a slight angle into 1cm thick biscotti.

Arrange the slices on two baking trays and bake for 10-12 minutes.

Cool on a wire racks before serving.

Biscotti can be stored in an airtight container for up to a month - I don't really recommend three months.