Mostaccioli al Caffé cookies
Ingredients
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
100 g honey
50 g caster sugar
1 tablespoon of vincotto
2 tablespoon espresso
50 g dark chocolate chips
2 tablespoons dutch cocoa powder
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground cloves
finely grated zest of 1/2 orange
100 g toasted ground almonds
200 g self-raising flour
250 g dark chocolate, broken into pieces
Method
Place the olive oil, honey, sugar, vincotto, cinnamon, cloves and chocolate chips in a medium saucepan and stir over low–medium heat for 2–3 minutes. Remove from the heat add the espresso and mix. Stir in the ground almonds, cocoa powder, orange zest then gradually add the flour until a dough is formed.
Line a large baking tray with baking paper. Tip the dough onto the tray and gently flatten out to a 5 mm thick rectangle. Rest in the fridge for 30 minutes to allow it to firm up.
TIP: Make sure you wash the pan and any utensils you used to make the dough straight away otherwise the combination of honey and melted sugar and chocolate will prove extremely difficult to remove. Alas, I know from experience!
Preheat your oven to 190°C (170°C fan-forced) and line another large baking tray with baking paper.
Take the tray out of the fridge and cut the dough into 4 cm diamonds. Arrange them on the prepared tray, leaving plenty of room for spreading. Bake for 10–15 minutes or until cooked through but still slightly soft. They will firm up to a crunchy texture as they cool down. Cool on the tray for a few minutes, then transfer to a wire rack and cool at room temperature for 2–3 hours.
Melt the chocolate in a heatproof bowl set over a saucepan of barely simmering water, stirring occasionally (make sure the bowl doesn’t touch the water). Coat your biscuits on a wire rack with the chocolate and let them sit for 2-5 minutes to cool and set. Mostaccioli will keep well in an airtight container for 3–4 days and make a delightful edible Christmas gift.
