HOLIDAY COOKIES : The Biscotti Alternative

Cookies are trouble for most fat watchers--blame it on the butter. This time of year, a lot of people avoid sugar cookies and nut bars and fill their cookie quota with biscotti, most of which are made without butter. But I happen to love the softer, more cookie-like biscotti--the kind made with butter.

In this recipe, I set out to make a lower-fat butter biscotti. Egg whites and egg substitute are used to keep the fat down.

And because there will be plenty of super-sweet cookies to fill holiday platters, I thought that a rosemary cookie would stand out in the sugar crowd. The herbal flavor of the fresh rosemary is a terrific match for the sweetness of the currants.

The timing in this recipe is designed to give the cookies a soft texture; a more traditional hard texture can be achieved by baking the biscotti a little longer.

ROSEMARY BISCOTTI

1/4 cup butter

1 1/2 cups sugar

3 egg whites

1/4 cup egg substitute (equivalent to 1 egg)

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1/4 teaspoon almond extract

1/4 cup minced fresh rosemary

1/2 cup currants

3 cups flour

1 tablespoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

Beat butter in mixing bowl until light and creamy. Beat in sugar until light. Beat in 2 egg whites until blended. Beat in egg substitute, vanilla extract, almond extract and 2 tablespoons minced rosemary until blended. Stir in currants.

Sift together flour, baking powder and salt in separate bowl. Stir into creamed mixture until completely mixed.

Divide dough into two parts. Shape each half into 12-inch log.

Roll each log in 1 tablespoon minced rosemary to coat outside. Place logs on baking sheet lightly sprayed with nonstick cooking spray. Lightly beat remaining egg white and brush tops and sides of logs. Bake at 350 degrees until lightly browned, 25 to 30 minutes.

Remove logs from oven and let cool 10 to 15 minutes. Cut each log into 1/2-inch slices. Arrange on baking sheets and bake until lightly browned, 10 to 15 minutes.

Makes about 32 biscotti.

Each biscotti contains about:

93 calories; 99 mg sodium; 4 mg cholesterol; 2 grams fat; 18 grams carbohydrates; 2 grams protein; 0.17 gram fiber.