Lemon Butter Biscotti

Despite the biscotti name, this recipe is actually a clever buttery lemon pastry where rolled dough rounds are sealed around a microwave-made pastry cream filling and baked in cupcake pans. The result is twelve individual portion pastries with a tender, lemon-scented butter crust hugging a creamy vanilla pastry cream center.

The dough comes together fast: butter, sugar, eggs, flour, baking powder and a finishing hit of fresh lemon zest. Rolled and cut with a 4-inch water glass for the bottoms, then a smaller 3-inch glass for the tops, the rounds nestle into cupcake pans like miniature pies. Pastry cream goes in, the smaller round seals the top, and the oven does the rest.

The microwave pastry cream is the time-saver that makes this approachable. Sugar, cornstarch, salt, milk, eggs, butter and vanilla all cook in a microwave bowl with stirring breaks, eliminating the slow stovetop tempering. A 1-tablespoon butter finish at the end gives the cream gloss and richness.

Pro Tips

• Stir the milk mixture every two minutes during the first microwave round. Letting it cook untouched gives you scorched corners and lumpy cream that no amount of whisking fixes.
• Temper the egg yolks (or whole eggs) before adding them to the hot milk mixture. Whisk in half the hot milk mixture first, then return the combined mixture to the bowl. Skipping this scrambles the eggs into the pastry cream.
• Cool the pastry cream completely before filling the dough rounds. Hot cream melts the butter in the dough and leaks out during baking.
• Seal the top and bottom dough rounds firmly. Crimp with a fork around the edges if needed to prevent the cream from boiling out the sides.

Variations

• Add a teaspoon of almond extract to the pastry cream as the recipe suggests for extra depth.
• Brush the tops with beaten egg before baking for a glossy, golden-brown finish.
• Stir fresh raspberries or sliced strawberries into the cooled pastry cream for fruit-filled cream pies.