Hazelnut Protein Biscotti
Sixteen crisp twice-baked biscotti with real hazelnut and coffee through the dough. The one baked recipe where protein powder makes the texture better, not worse.
You'll Need
- Baking sheet
- Parchment paper
- Large mixing bowl
- Serrated bread knife
- Wire cooling rack
Ingredients
- ✓1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
- ✓2 scoops Hazelnut Protein Coffee (one 40g serving)
- ✓2/3 cup granulated sugar
- ✓1 tsp baking powder
- ✓1/4 tsp salt
- ✓2 large eggs
- ✓3 tbsp butter, melted and cooled
- ✓1 tsp vanilla extract
- ✓3/4 cup hazelnuts, toasted and roughly chopped
Instructions
- 1Heat the oven to 350F and line a baking sheet with parchment.
- 2Whisk the flour, the two scoops of Hazelnut Protein Coffee, the sugar, baking powder and salt together thoroughly. Whisk for a full 30 seconds - protein powder clumps in dry flour more readily than flour does on its own.
- 3Beat the eggs, cooled melted butter and vanilla together, then pour into the dry ingredients. Mix until it just comes together into a stiff, slightly sticky dough. Do not knead it.
- 4Fold in the chopped toasted hazelnuts.
- 5With damp hands, shape the dough on the tray into one log roughly 12 inches long, 3 inches wide and 3/4 inch high. Damp hands are the only way to handle this dough without half of it sticking to you.
- 6Bake 25 minutes until firm and lightly golden. Take it out and let it cool on the tray for 15 minutes - cutting it hot will shatter it, cutting it cold will crumble it. Fifteen minutes is the window.
- 7Slide the log onto a board and cut on a slight diagonal into 16 slices with a serrated knife, using a firm single downward stroke rather than sawing.
- 8Lay the slices cut side down on the tray, drop the oven to 300F and bake 12 more minutes, turning them once halfway. Cool completely on a wire rack - they crisp as they cool, not in the oven.
Protein powder dries baked goods out. In muffins and cakes that is a problem you spend the whole recipe compensating for. In biscotti it is the entire point - biscotti are supposed to be dry, hard and built for dunking.
So this is the rare bake where adding whey actually improves the result rather than fighting it. The Hazelnut Protein Coffee brings the coffee and hazelnut flavour through the dough itself instead of relying on extract, and the drying effect gives you the snap.
Sixteen biscotti from one batch, about 160 calories each. They keep two weeks in a tin, which is longer than any other baked recipe here.
Nutrition Per Serving
| Serving size | 1 biscotti (1/16 of batch) |
| Calories | 160 |
| Protein | 4g |
| Total carbohydrate | 12g |
| Fiber | 1g |
| Total sugars | 8g |
| Added sugar | 8g |
| Total fat | 7g |
| Sodium | 80mg |
Why This Works
Whey protein absorbs moisture and produces a drier, firmer crumb than flour alone. In almost every other bake that is the enemy. In biscotti, which are deliberately twice-baked to drive off moisture, it does half the work for you - and it means 40g of powder can go in against 220g of flour without needing extra fat or liquid to compensate.
The second bake at the lower temperature is drying, not browning. Whey browns faster than flour, so keeping the second stage at 300F rather than 350F is what stops the cut faces going bitter while the middle is still drying out.
Fifteen minutes of cooling before slicing is the whole difference between clean biscotti and a tray of rubble. Straight from the oven the crumb is still steaming and gluten-soft, and a knife tears it. Fully cold, the log is brittle and shatters. In between, it cuts like a loaf of bread.
Tips From Our Kitchen
- Serrated knife, one firm downward stroke. Sawing tears the crumb apart.
- Cool 15 minutes before slicing - not more, not less.
- Toast the hazelnuts first in a dry pan for 3 to 4 minutes. Untoasted they add crunch but almost no flavour.
- Damp hands to shape the log. The dough is sticky and there is no way around it.
- They keep two weeks in an airtight tin and get harder over time, which is what dunking is for.
Swaps & Variations
- Chocolate dipped: melt 3 oz dark chocolate and dip one end of each cooled biscotti.
- Nut-free: leave the hazelnuts out and add 1/3 cup dark chocolate chips instead.
- Almond version: swap the hazelnuts for toasted almonds and add 1/2 tsp almond extract.
- Less sugar: cut to 1/2 cup. They will be slightly less crisp but still good.
- Dairy-free: coconut oil in place of the butter, measured the same.
Common Questions
Does protein powder ruin baked goods?
In most bakes it dries them out, which is why cakes and muffins made with it can be disappointing. Biscotti are meant to be dry and crisp, so the same effect works in your favour here.
Why did my log crumble when I cut it?
It cooled too long. Fifteen minutes out of the oven is the window - hot and it tears, cold and it shatters. Use a serrated knife in one firm downward stroke.
How much protein is in each biscotti?
About 4g each, or 9g for two with a coffee. They are small biscuits, sixteen from one batch.
How long do they keep?
Two weeks in an airtight tin at room temperature, and three months frozen. They harden over time, which is exactly what you want for dunking.
Why is the second bake at a lower temperature?
That stage is about drying, not browning. Whey protein browns faster than flour, so 300F keeps the cut faces from turning bitter while the centres finish drying.
Hazelnut Protein Coffee
Warm, nutty, and not sweet. Toasted hazelnut against real arabica, with 22g of grass-fed whey protein and 4.5g of BCAAs to support muscle recovery and keep you full, plus organic adaptogens and a pre and probiotic ble...
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