Cheddar Jalapeño Cornbread Biscotti

Turning classically sweet recipes into savory variations is my speciality. Do you remember the time I turned doughnuts into cheeseburger doughnuts? If you haven’t tried those, I highly recommend them. There’s something so interesting and exciting about switching classic recipes up from what we’re normally used to. I wanted to create a savory biscotti that you could eat as a snack or pile on a cheese board. These Cheddar Jalapeño Cornbread Biscotti are like my favorite cornbread but in crispy crunchy cookie form. They’re studded with corn kernels, cheddar cheese and jalapeño, but don’t worry, the pepper only gives it a slight kick. It won’t knock your socks off, I promise. I like to eat them as I would cornbread, with a thick slather of butter and a drizzle of honey. They’re fun and delicious!

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cornmeal, baking powder, salt and black pepper.

**Note: You want to make sure to use fine cornmeal for this. If you use coarse ground or stone ground, the texture will be too grainy and will feel gritty when you bite into it.**

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In a separate bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add in the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.

**Tip: Make sure your eggs are at room temperature as it’ll ensure that they blend into the batter smoothly. If you forget to take them out of the fridge prior, you can run them under warm water for a few second to take the chill off.**

Add the dry ingredients all at once and give it a stir until just combined, making sure that no dry ingredients remain.

Add in the corn, cheddar and jalapeño and fold until they’re all even distributed amongst the dough.

**Note: I just use frozen corn for this recipe, but if you have fresh corn you can just cut the kernels off the cob. If you do use frozen, make sure it’s thawed and patted dry to remove any excess moisture!**

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Transfer the mixture to the prepared baking sheet. Using floured hands, form into a log that is roughly 14 by 3 1/2 inches. Bake until firm, lightly golden brown, and slightly cracked on top, 30 to 35 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool for 15 minutes.

Carefully transfer the log to a cutting board. Using a very sharp serrated knife, cut the log on a slightly diagonal into 1/2-inch thick slices. Arrange on the same baking sheet, close together. 

**Note: You can really cram them into the baking sheet as they won’t rise or spread at this stage anymore. Just make sure they’re all in a single layer.**

Bake the biscotti for 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and carefully flip each over. Return to the oven and bake for 10 minutes longer. Allow to cool on the baking sheet for 10 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely. They’re crisp up and dry out slightly as they cool.

Serve with honey butter (just softened butter mixed with honey—regular or hot honey would be good) or just serve them softened salted butter and a drizzle of honey at the end. Either way, you can’t go wrong.

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I also envisioned these being a great addition to a cheese and charcuterie board. They would pair so nicely with all sorts of different cheeses and cured meats!

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I think we should all embrace the savory biscotti more and these are certainly a great way to kick things off. I hope you’ll give them a try. If you do, be sure to let me know what you think. Thank you so much for reading and following along. I appreciate you.