I'm a big fan of King Arthur Flour's online catalog. There are always new gadget and pans, and a huge selection of flours and add-in for all kinds of baking.Besides products, though, the service is really good. The few times I've had questions or problems, they've handled it promptly, and with a smile. It's a great company to work with.
Needless to say, I'm on the mailing list for their paper catalogs, and I'm on the email list as well. I'm on a LOT of food-related email lists, but many of them are useless.
The King Arthur Flour email list, though, is constantly offering specials. Sometimes it's free shipping and sometimes it's free products with a purchase.
Sometimes I'll wait for a good special to come around when I order, and sometimes I take advantage of whatever is being offered.
Not too long ago, the free item with a purchase was Chocolate Chocolate Chip Biscotti Mix. Needless to say, I've got plenty of biscotti recipes, so I don't really need a mix. Which is why I didn't get around to making this until now.
It was a chilly day, I wanted to put something sweet into the oven, but I had a dozen other things to do. I figured it was time for me to pull out the mix and give it a try.
Like many King Arthur Flour mixes, this one didn't have high altitude instruction on the box. I know they're starting to put high altitude instruction online, but I was halfway through the process before I thought about it, so I made the recipe with the standard instructions.
This mix requires two eggs, three tablespoons of vegetable oil, and one tablespoon of water, so not only was it simple, but the ingredient list was minimal. The instructions were clear as well.
It all went pretty well, except that even after I baked the biscotti log longer than the instructions required, it was a little soft inside. The instructions said that it would still have some give when pressed, but mine was a little less done than it should have been at that point.
Otherwise, though, they were a success. Since these were just for us to eat, the presentation wasn't a big deal. And I'm sure they'd be perfect at lower altitude.
Taste-wise, they're not overly sweet which is great, and they have good chocolate flavor. They're a very dark brown, much darker than the photo on the box, which looked more like latte than chocolate.
The darkness is probably because of the black cocoa, which isn't something you'll find in most baking mixes. There were tiny chocolate chips as well, but they're not very noticeable in the finished cookies.
For a box mix, these were pretty good. I'd make them again if I had them on hand.
