each holiday season, i make cookies, lots and lots of cookies.  it is a tradition in our house to make all kinds of cookies and give them as gifts.  for my mother, i make apricot biscotti and if i can, i dip them in white chocolate.  they turned out beautifully this year.  the biggest surprise is that i actually did the dip by hand-no tempering machine since mine is out of commission until i can replace the probe.

for the round up, each day this week, i will be posting photos from a different batch of cookies that i baked for the holiday.  if recipes are available, i will include them or links to them.  each day this week, i will post photos from a different batch of cookies that i baked for the holiday so be sure to visit daily!

once you have the length of the log, work on getting the width and the thickness-it is best if the log is uniform in shape and thickness so that it bakes evenly.

bake them and let them cool completely.  contrary to what most recipes tell you, biscotti will slice cleanly and perfectly after the first bake only if you let them sit for 4-6 hours or even overnight.  the moisture within the log has time to distribute and soften the outer crust.  that way, you can slice them with a serrated knife and not have them crumble or break.

for the rest of the family, i make something chocolate.  this year, i made marbled almond biscotti.

just like the apricot biscotti, the dough is portioned out.  the two doughs are stacked and are now ready to make marbled logs.

using a little cold water on my hands to prevent the dough from sticking, i stretch and pinch the balls of dough to make the logs.

hard to believe that the holiday season is coming to a close.  in the blink of an eye, it was the day after christmas…to see the rest of the cookies i made this year, check back.  i will be posting photos all week.