Cake Mix Biscotti Recipe

I have a strange fascination with "doctored" cake mix creations. I love the idea that you can break the rules, so to speak, by using the mix in a way different than its simple intended purpose. In particular I love the recipes that have a finished product that is not cake at all, but cookies or pancakes or bars--it feels like the sweetest sort of kitchen science. So when I was leafing through a book called Complete Cake Mix Magic: 300 Easy Desserts Good as Homemade, I gravitated right toward the cake mix biscotti recipe. 

While the recipe in the book is for a hazelnut biscotti, I decided to go all holiday on this business and bake up some peppermint chip cake mix biscotti instead. Of course, this decision was also fueled by the fact that I had a bag of Andes brand Peppermint Crunch Baking Chips (I haven't seen them in many stores so there's the amazon link) which I thought would be festive and cute to use. 

I also used a smaller box of cake mix than suggested in the recipe, so I scaled the rest of the ingredients down. The resulting biscotti weren't completely beautifully shaped, but gosh, were they tasty. Nice and buttery, like a condensed yellow cake with a crunchy crust, the smattering of mint chips gave the cookies a very nice, rich yet refreshing creamy mint finish on the tongue. Not such a bad thing.

Cake Mix Biscotti

Makes about 18

• 1 package (9 ounces) Jiffy yellow cake mix
• 1/2 cup all purpose flour
• 1 egg
• 1/2 stick butter, melted
• 1/2 to 3/4 cup Andes peppermint chips

Procedure

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
2. In a large mixing bowl, combine the cake mix, flour, egg, and butter. Beat on low speed for 1 minute or until well blended. Fold in the peppermint chips until incorporated. Divide the dough in half.
3. On a prepared baking sheet, shape the dough into a 10 by 3 inch rectangle that is 1/2 inch deep. Or you can make two shorter logs of dough, but make sure they have plenty of space as they will spread. Bake for 15 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool for 10 minutes.
4. Using a sharp knife, cut each rectangle into 1/2 inch slices. Place slices on their side on baking sheets. Bake, one tray at a time, for 10 minutes. Turk slices over and bake for 5 to 10 minutes longer or until crisp and golden. Cool for 1 minute on baking sheets, then remove to wire racks and cool completely.