Our senses can provide powerful memory triggers of people and events in our lives. The smell of cedar brings my paternal grandmother to mind. She had a large cedar chest where she kept her treasures packed away in tissue paper. As a little girl, I would listen fascinated by my grandmother’s stories about each cedar scented item. The taste of Earl Grey tea brings me thoughts of my father, who always said that you can’t smell Earl Grey tea without smiling. Oreos are another memory trigger for me. I can’t see an Oreo without thinking about my maternal grandfather.
My grandfather was a picky eater. Usually, being a picky eater means you will only eat certain things. My grandfather would only eat certain things, made by certain brands. That’s what he said, anyway. My grandmother didn’t buy into his brand pickiness.
There used to be two name brand chocolate sandwich cookies; Oreos by Nabisco and Hydrox by Sunshine. My grandfather said he only ate Oreos. He said he couldn’t stand Hydrox and would refuse to eat them if offered. However, Hydrox were less expensive and my grandmother didn’t like to waste money. She always bought Hydrox cookies and served them to my grandfather in an Oreo box. He ate them without comment or complaint.
I have often wondered whether my grandfather really didn’t know he was eating Hydrox cookies. I mean, Oreos and Hydrox both had their names clearly embossed on each cookie. Did my grandfather, generally an intelligent and observant individual, just not notice? Did he eat without his glasses on and couldn’t read the embossed cookies? Or, was he just playing along with my grandmother’s subterfuge? I will never know the answer but will always associate Oreos with my Grandpa Nat.
There can be no subterfuge with these Oreo biscotti because Hydrox went out of production in 1999. The recipe most commonly found for Oreo biscotti originated with Kraft. (Kraft owns Nabisco. Nabisco makes Oreos.) I tried the Kraft recipe and it produced a cookie that was way too hard for my taste. I wanted crunch without risk to my teeth. I adapted a King Arthur vanilla biscotti recipe to include the crushed Oreos and found the crunchy but bitable texture I was looking for.
Decorating these biscotti is optional. If you are mailing them to or from somewhere hot, I suggest you skip it. The white chocolate drizzle is for looks and would melt in hot temperatures. I think these biscotti are pretty and delicious without embellishment.
Oreo Biscotti
Ingredients
Biscotti
- 6 tablespoons unsalted butter room temperature
- ⅔ cup granulated sugar
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 3 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
- 2 large eggs
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 18 chocolate sandwich cookies coarsely chopped
Decorating
- 4 ounces white chocolate broken into chunks
- ½ tablespoon vegetable shortening
- 3 chocolate sandwich cookies cookie part only, then finely crushed
- 3 tablespoons white decorating sugar
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line baking sheet with parchment.
- In the bowl of an electric mixer, cream butter, sugar, salt, vanilla extract and baking powder until smooth.
- Add eggs, and beat to combine.
- On low speed, slowly add flour and mix until smooth.
- Stir in chopped Oreos.
- Divide the dough in half. Scoop onto the baking sheet and shape into 2 logs about 9” x 2”.
- Bake for 25 minutes.
- Remove biscotti from oven and reduce oven temperature to 325 degrees F.
- Cool on the baking sheet for about 15 minutes. (If biscotti crumble while cutting wait until the dough cools a little longer.) Slice the logs into ½” – ¾” slices.
- Stand the slices on edge on the baking sheet.
- Bake for an additional 25-30 minutes or until golden. Cook longer for crunchier biscotti and less time for softer biscotti.
- Remove from oven and cool completely on wire racks.
- If decorating: Put the biscotti on a parchment or wax paper lined baking sheet, close together on edge.
- Place white chocolate and shortening in a small bowl and microwave in 10-20 second intervals until just melted. Stir in between intervals. White chocolate burns easily, so watch the chocolate carefully to not over cook.
- Pour melted chocolate into a zip lock bag and seal. Cut a tiny bit off one corner.
- Drizzle the melted chocolate back and forth over biscotti rows.
- Immediately sprinkle tops with decorating sugar and/or finely crushed Oreo cookies.
- Store in an airtight container at room temperature. These biscotti remain delicious for at least 4 weeks.
Yvonne @ bitter baker
I love your blog by the way!
themondaybox
Thank you so much, Yvonne! We must form a mutual admiration society because I am in awe of your breads, roll, and crackers! Reading your blog always makes me hungry. 🙂
Yvonne @ bitter baker
Ooo, biscottis are my favorites! And with oreo cookies?? Yes please!
themondaybox
My favorites too, Yvonne! They are great to eat, great to dunk, great to mail. And they come in so many flavors. Obviously, Oreo is a favorite. 🙂
Dorothy @ Crazy for Crust
SO, so good!
themondaybox
Thanks, Dorothy! So glad you like them!
Kiran
Love the added Oreo’s here — I bet everyone agrees with me 😉
themondaybox
Oreos seem to be everyone’s favorites, Kiran! They add both color and flavor to these crunchy biscotti. 🙂
Rachel @ Bakerita
This biscotti looks amazing, and I love the story about your grandfather, too funny!! Pinned 🙂
themondaybox
Thanks, Rachel, for your kind comment and the pinning too!! I was so so lucky to grow up with 4 grandparents near by and have a head full of wonderful memories to pass on to my own children. 🙂
bakerbynature
Oreo’s are one of my biggest guilty pleasures! I love that you incorporated them into these pretty little biscotti’s.
themondaybox
Thanks, Ashley! I am with you on the guilty pleasures! Oreos are the only packaged cookie that I find addicting. 🙂
Chandra@The Plaid and Paisley Kitchen
That is hilarious about your Grandpa!!! This biscotti looks AMAZING!
themondaybox
Thanks, Chandra! I love the crunchiness of these biscotti and the Oreo taste! I think my Grandpa knew what he liked and wasn’t much interested in venturing further. Perhaps he made the request for what he liked best in the hopes that most of the time that’s what would appear.:) Bottom line, I smile about my Grandpa whenever I see an Oreo.
Monica
Oh, what a neat idea! My son would absolutely love this kind of biscotti! And my husband is all for a softer biscotti whereas I don’t mind risking my front teeth. : )
I was just thinking about making a batch of biscotti (I love having them around to munch on and so glad that I learned how to do it) and wondering if I should add chocolate chips – oreos are way more ingenius! And love the story about your grandparents. I’m guessing your Grandpa was playing along…but what do I know! : )
themondaybox
I think these biscotti might make your whole family happy, Monica. These are crunchy, if you bake them to crunchiness. Its just that the original recipe definitely required dipping. These make dipping optional. 🙂 Chips (chocolate, cinnamon, butterscotch) are awesome in biscotti! Maybe you should make a few batches. 🙂 My grandparents were married for a very long time which, to me, means they learned how to play along with a lot of things. You are probably right about the Oreos! 🙂
Rosie @ Blueberry Kitchen
I love this idea, your biscotti look so delicious!
themondaybox
Thank you, Rosie! Most biscotti cater to adult tastes. These can be enjoyed by everyone, I think. They are equally good with milk or coffee. 🙂
Mrs. DeYarmond
I LOVE it !! I love biscotti and I am a huge oreo lover so this recipe is just for me !! The pictures are perfect : my mouth was watering when I saw all of your photos !
themondaybox
I really appreciate your enthusiasm, Sarah! Oreos are definitely an international favorite! They add flavor and yum-appeal to these biscotti.
Sally
I never, ever would have thought to combine Oreos and biscotti! Now this is what I’d love to use to dunk into my morning coffee. Oreos for breakfast!
themondaybox
Shhhh, Sally. That was my secret plan all along. 🙂 Both biscotti and Oreos are crunchy and taste great dipped in your morning beverage of choice….unless your morning beverage of choice is Coke, then maybe not.
Suzie
I always say on the oreo queen on Facebook…lol! These look really good, I want to try them soon, very soon 🙂
themondaybox
Thanks, Queen Oreo! 🙂 I had only ever eaten Oreos straight up (by the dozen) and am really happy with how they work as an add-in in these biscoti. I will have to continue my investigations. 🙂
Mama's Gotta Bake
Oh dear, Oreo’s are my downfall. Guess I’ll be making these!
themondaybox
What is it about Oreo’s, Sheryl? There is no other packaged cookie that even tempts me and I am dangerous around Oreos! I hope you’ll give these a try. The texture has just the right amount of crunch and the Oreo flavor is only mildly sweet.
Jess @ On Sugar Mountain
OMG Wendy you put Oreos inside biscotti. My mind is officially blown. Oh how I wish I had a few of these to dunk in my coffee right this minute!
themondaybox
I would happily offer you biscotti with your coffee, Jess, if you were near by. 🙂 Being that you are half a continent away, you should bake some. Its such a good recipe.The extra baking takes time but they are fast to mix up and last for ages. Then you could dunk away, all the way to graduation!
New sweets on the blog
They look delicious! and your photography is so professional, really good job!!
themondaybox
You are so kind, Ada! The biscotti have a wonderful crunch. I was surprised that they are not at all over the top sweet. My photo styling (?), on the other hand, is struggling. I am trying to figure out a style that is “me”. I know what I don’t want but haven’t yet figured out what I do want.