What is Italian biscotti?

Italian biscotti are long, dry and crunchy cookies. The name "biscotti" comes from the Italian words, "bis," which means "twice," and "cotto," which means "baked."

The recipe for biscotti includes flour, sugar, eggs, pine nuts and almonds. There is no source of other fat, such as butter or milk, in the cookies. When baking, the cookies are baked once in a slab form, sliced into their pieces, and then baked again to make them hard.

Many modern biscotti recipes feature additional flavors, such as anise and cinnamon. Some recipes call for the cookies to be glazed in chocolate. A popular way to eat biscotti is to dunk them in Vin Santo, an Italian dessert wine.