Gingerbread biscotti are a warmly spiced winter treat with a crisp crunch and a sweet glaze ~ perfect for dunking and holiday gifting. They freeze beautifully, too!
These twice-baked gingerbread biscotti deliver warm spice and satisfying crunch. The traditional sugar glaze adds sweetness and an Old World holiday look. They stay fresh for 2 weeks and ship beautifully, making them perfect for holiday sharing and gifting.
the gingerbread biscotti process
No matter your flavor or add-ins, this is the basic biscotti method, it’s a double bake similar to the one I use for my super crunchy Copycat Raincoast Crisps® Crackers:
- Mix & First Bake
- Make a soft dough, shape it into one or two flat logs on a baking sheet, and bake until set and lightly golden.
- Slice
- Let the logs cool just enough to handle, then slice them on the diagonal into long cookies.
- Second Bake
- Bake again until crisp and dry ~ that’s what gives biscotti their famous crunch.
the tradition of glazing gingerbread
Lebkuchen (German holiday gingerbread) bakers have been brushing warm gingerbread with a thin sugar glaze for centuries. It adds sweetness, locks in moisture, gives a soft shine, and keeps the gingerbread fresh longer. To me it just gives these gingerbread biscotti an Old World holiday look, I love it.
Storage tips for gingerbread biscotti
- Let your gingerbread biscotti cool completely before storing so they stay crisp.
- Keep in an airtight tin or jar at room temperature for up to 10–14 days.
- For longer storage, freeze in a well-sealed container or bag for up to 3 months; thaw at room temp.
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Gingerbread Biscotti
Ingredients
- 2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
- 1 tsp ginger
- 3/4 tsp cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp allspice
- 1/2 tsp clove
- 1/2 tsp nutmeg
- 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 8 Tbsp butter, melted and cooled
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 1/4 cup molasses
- 2 large eggs
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
for the glaze
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- pinch salt
- water, to thin
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
- In a medium sized mixing bowl, combine the flour, ginger, cinnamon, allspice, clove, nutmeg, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Whisk to combine.
- In a small mixing bowl, combine the melted and cooled butter, brown sugar, molasses, and vanilla extract. Whisk well until smooth.
- Add the eggs and whisk well until smooth.
- Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and fold together just until everything is incorporated and there are no dry streaks of flour left. You should have a soft, pliable dough.
- Transfer the dough to your prepared baking sheet and form it into a rectangular log about 16 inches long and 3-4 inches wide. You can also divide the dough in half and use two smaller baking sheets. Your log of dough should be about 1 inch tall. It will spread out somewhat as it bakes, so your biscotti will be more like 5-6 inches long. Note: I found that I did not need to do much to achieve a smooth top, but if you feel like you need to, you can put a little oil on your hands to help smooth the top.
- Bake for about 25 minutes until slightly puffed and beginning to crack a little bit on top.
- Remove from the oven and allow to cool on the baking sheet for about 15 minutes. The log should be warm, but not too warm to handle.
- Gently transfer to a cutting board, and use a sharp serrated knife to cut the log into sections about 1 inch wide. You can slice on the diagonal, or straight across. A serrated knife will help to get even slices without the dough crumbling.
- Place the sliced biscotti back onto the baking sheet (you can remove the parchment paper), standing up so that both cut sides are visible. Spread them out as much as you can for good air flow and even baking.
- Turn the oven down to 325F and bake for another 30 minutes.
- Remove from the oven and allow to completely cool on the baking sheet before transferring.
to make the glaze
- In a small bowl, whisk together the powdered sugar, vanilla extract, salt, and about 3 tsp of water to form a thin glaze. (Start with 1-2 tsp of water and keep adding until you get the consistency you want).
- Transfer the glaze to a shallow plate or bowl, and gently dip the tops of the cooled biscotti, using a rocking motion, into the glaze. Allow the excess to drip off before transferring to a cooling rack, or parchment lined baking sheet, to allow the glaze to set.
Notes
Nutrition
you asked…
Yes, freeze them in an airtight container or a freezer bag for up to 3 months.
Let the loaves cool after the first baking for 10-15 minutes, they should still be warm, but not hot. Use a sharp, serrated knife and a gentle sawing motion to cut the slices rather than pressing down.
Yes ~ they’ll be slightly drier, but still delicious. The thin sugar glaze adds moisture and helps extend shelf-life, so if you skip it, plan to enjoy the biscotti within about a week.
For sure! Pecans, walnuts, hazelnuts, or dark chocolate chips all complement gingerbread spice. Keep add-ins to ½–¾ cup so the biscotti dough stays stable during slicing.
more holiday gingerbread!
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These are delicious and so easy to make. My only suggestion is to make a double batch. I gifted most of mine and had to make more! Thank you!
Excellent biscotti recipe! The spices are perfect, the cookies delicious and the house smelled heavenly!
I’ve never made biscotti before and these were so easy!
I love all things gingerbread and biscotti is such an easy way to make a cookie, without the rolling and cutting out, etc. I was looking at your website to find the recipe from a few yrs. ago for the bittersweet gingerbread brownies, but couldn’t locate it; can you please share again? Thanks
No eggs in the list of ingredients for the gingerbread biscotti, only in the method.
Thanks Sue…love your recipes.
Fixed Jeanne, so sorry, it’s 2 large eggs. Thank you for catching that!
Just wanted to thank you for putting the serving size in the nutrition info… 🙂