Vegan Biscotti Recipes

Vegan Biscotti Recipes? But aren’t all biscotti and for that matter all cookies Vegetarian? To answer that question one needs to have an understanding of what Vegan means. Those of you who are Vegan excuse the digression.

Veganism is a type of vegetarian diet that excludes meat, eggs, dairy products and all other animal-derived ingredients. Many vegans also do not eat foods that are processed using animal products, such as refined white sugar and some wines. Most vegans also avoid the use of all products tested on animals, as well as animal-derived non-food products, such as leather, fur and wool.

I am not an expert when it comes to what Veganism is and what they will and won’t eat but as I understand it, there is even some debate as to whether certain foods, such as honey, fit into a vegan diet. So if you consider, yourself to be Vegan then you will have to decide if these Vegan Biscotti Recipes fit your definition of what it means to be Vegan.

The three primary ingredients used to make Biscotti that would need a Vegan substitution are eggs, butter/margarine and chocolate.

Go to Vegan Biscotti Recipe Collection.

Go Vegan! Substitution Guide.

Egg Substitutes

So what can you use to substitute for eggs in a Vegan Biscotti recipe? The good news is that just about any recipe that calls for eggs can be made vegan by using the proper egg substitute. Eggs perform a different function, depending on what you're making, so you may also need a different egg substitute, depending on the dish.

But .....in baked goods such as cookies and muffins and of course Biscotti, eggs add moisture and act as a binder, gluing all the other ingredients together.

As a general rule, the fewer eggs a recipe calls for, the easier they will be to substitute for. So, if a recipe calls for one egg, using an egg substitute will work much better than in a recipe that requires three or four eggs.

Another thing to consider is how the substitute will affect the overall taste of the finished dish.

Bananas, for example, may add a welcome hint of fruity sweetness to pancakes and cookies, but if you are making a casserole or another savory dish, you will want to use something else. Personally I just can’t eat bananas so I have not experiment with their use in Biscotti.

Commercial Egg Replacer

Ener-G is an incredibly versatile and easy to use commercial egg replacer available in most health food stores and larger well-stocked grocery stores. Ener-G and other store-bought egg substitutes are relatively flavorless and work well in baked goods, such as cookies, muffins and cakes, and of course in Vegan Biscotti.

Tip: I find that despite the instructions on the package to mix Ener-G with two tablespoons of water, some recipes will need a bit more moisture when replacing eggs using Ener-G, so you may need to compensate with an extra tablespoon of water or soy milk.

Bananas and Applesauce

Smash up or blend about a half a banana or 1/4 cup applesauce to use as an egg replacer in baked goods such as muffins, pancakes or yeast-free quick breads, such as pumpkin bread, and of course, banana bread! Bananas and applesauce add the perfect amount of thick moisture, like eggs, but they won't help your dishes rise so you may need to add a bit more baking powder or baking soda to help it along.

Tofu

Not just any tufu but Silken tofu is also an appropriate egg substitute in baked goods. To use, blend 1/4 cup silken tofu with liquid ingredients until tofu is smooth and creamy. While it won't alter the flavor of a recipe, using tofu as an egg substitute will make baked goods a bit on the heavy and thick side, so it works well in brownies and pancakes and perhaps Vegan Biscotti, but wouldn't work well in something like an angel food cake that needs to be light and fluffy.

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butter & margarine substitutes

Margarine??

Isn’t margarine vegan?

Most margarines contain trace amounts of dairy products such as whey or lactose.

There are a few brands that don't, including Blue Bonnet Light Margarine, and Smart Balance Light Margarine. . If you want to be sure that the margarine you're using is 100% vegan, you may want to use a product that is specifically marketed as a vegan non-dairy spread.

If you're checking labels looking for a vegan margarine, be sure to look out for whey, lactose, casein and caseinate, which are dairy derivatives frequently used in margarines.

Butter Substitute: Non-Dairy Vegan Margarine

Vegan margarine is the best non-dairy substitute for butter and will work well with anything you need butter for, whether you're baking cookies or you need something to spread on your toast. The only downside to using margarine instead of butter is that it may contain hydrogenated oils, which are not healthy. If this is a concern for you, look for a dairy-free vegan margarine that contains no trans-fats or hydrogenated oils.

Which brand is the best vegan margarine?

In my opinion, the best vegan margarine needs to be one that I can use for any purpose, whether it’s to make a dairy-free vegan cheese sauce, to use in baking vegan cookies or muffins, or to spread on my toast.

It should be functional and taste good on its own.

For these reasons, my favorite vegan margarine is Earth Balance brand. It tastes quite rich and buttery has a smooth consistency and is reasonably priced. It is also gluten-free, non-GMO, and, has no hydrogenated oils.

If you can’t find Earth Balance then a margarines that are made from 100% soybean oil and nothing else, are a good second choice.

A pure soybean margarine works well in baking, but doesn't have quite the richness of flavor that Earth Balance does when eaten alone on bread. So if the flavor of your Vegan Biscotti seem a bit bland when using these margarines, liven them up a bit by increasing the amount of extracts or flavorings.

How can I use vegan margarine while baking?

You can use Earth Balance in any recipe that calls for vegan margarine, and in just about any recipe that calls for butter. Simply substitute the same amount of vegan margarine for the butter.

Other brands, such as Smart Balance light, don't work as well in baking, and says so right on the label, so take the time to read the label if you're unsure if your vegan margarine is suitable for baking.

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Vegan Chocolate

Chocolate itself comes from a plant, making it vegan, yes, but in the process of going from the tree to the grocery store, a variety of things are added, including sugar and milk or milk fat.

Good quality chocolate, has a higher chocolate content, pure ingredients and no additives. The ingredients will be simple: cocoa, cocoa butter, lecithin, sugar and sometimes vanilla. And that is all.

Lesser quality chocolates have a long ingredients list, along with cheap fillers such as food starch and artificial flavorings, and often contain milk, milk solids or milk fat, which in not vegan.

So while most chocolate is not vegan due to the additives, the good news is that there are plenty of vegan chocolate options available. If you are looking for vegan chocolate at your local market, here are a few brands of chocolate that are dairy-free, whey-free and casein-free.

These are what I call "unintentionally vegan", that is, they aren't marketed as vegan or labeled as such, but they contain no animal ingredients and thusly would be the vegan criteria. These would be an very good choice for your Vegan Biscotti Recipe substitution.

"Unintentionally" Vegan Chocolate brands:

• Chocolove Dark Chocolate and Orange Peel
• Trader Joe's brand chocolate chips
• Newman's Own Chocolate Bars: Sweet Dark Espresso and Sweet Dark Orange, regular and organic)
• Ritter Sport - Chocolate Mint (the light blue ones) and Marzipan (the red one)
• Green and Blacks Organic Chocolate - Dark Chocolate
• Organic Equal Exchange Chocolate All flavors except for milk chocolate
• Fanny May's Dark 70% chocolate bars

More Vegan Chocolate Brands

Here are a few brands of vegan chocolate that are specifically made to be vegan and are marketed and labeled as such.

• Endangered Species Dark Chocolate (most, but not all flavors)
• Sunspire and Tropical Source (chocolate chips and chocolate bars)
• Whole Foods Brand Chocolate Chips
• Whole Foods Brand Dark Chocolate, & Dark Chocolate with Almonds
• Dagoba
• Plamil Organic Vegan Chocolate (fair trade)
• Terra Nostra Rice Milk Vegan Choco Bars
• Sjaaks
• Bug Bites

Well if you want to experiment on your own, I hope this information on Vegan substitutions helps you develop your own Vegan Biscotti Recipes. But....if you would rather just stay with a proven recipe then let's get to it. Check out the Vegan Biscotti Recipes below, I'm sure you won’t be disappointed.

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Vegan Biscotti Recipe Collection

So, go ahead and pour yourself a cup of coffee, your favorite tea or glass of wine, sit back, get comfortable, and enjoy browsing through this collection of Vegan Biscotti Recipes. You'll have fun trying and sharing these recipes with family and friends and soon everyone will be amazed at your biscotti baking skills.

• Vegan Almond Biscotti
• Vegan Almond Anise Biscotti
• Vegan Chocolate Chip Biscotti with Nuts
• Vegan Chocolate Walnut Biscotti
• Vegan Orange Biscotti with cranberries and walnuts
• Vegan Cookie Recipes Ok! so these aren't Biscotti.

More to come so check back soon!