Mandel bread is a twice-baked Jewish cookie with a delicate crunch on the outside, softer on the inside. Despite the name, it is not bread. We like to describe it as a softer biscotti.
If you grew up in an Ashkenazi Jewish family, there was probably a tin of it on a counter somewhere. If you didn't, you have probably never heard the word. Mandel bread has been around for roughly two hundred years, and it never really made the jump out of Jewish kitchens.
Where the name comes from
Mandel means almond. Brot means bread. Both in Yiddish and in German. So mandelbrot, literally, is almond bread.
You will see it spelled a lot of ways, and they all refer to more or less the same cookie:
- Mandel bread, the most common American spelling
- Mandelbrot, the Yiddish original
- Mandelbroit or mandelbrodt, regional variants
- Kamishbrot or kamish bread, common in Ukrainian and Russian Jewish families
The spelling usually tells you where a family came from, or which relative wrote the recipe down. Ours came from Grandma Jeanne.
How mandel bread differs from biscotti
This is the question we get most, and biscotti is the right place to start. Both are twice-baked. Both are made for dunking. The differences are real, though.
Texture. Biscotti is hard. Mandel bread has a delicate crunch at the edge and stays softer in the middle. Most mandel bread recipes use oil, which keeps it from drying out completely in the second bake.
Shape. Both start as a log that gets baked, sliced, and baked again. Mandel bread slices tend to be thicker and less uniform, because they were made in home kitchens by people who were not trying to match a bakery case.
Origin. Biscotti is Italian. Mandel bread is Ashkenazi Jewish, from Eastern and Central Europe.
Are they related? Probably. One theory says the Jewish community in Piedmont, Italy carried the twice-baked technique east, where it became mandelbrot. No one can prove it, but the timeline works. We have a full comparison in Mandel Bread vs. Biscotti.
Why it's twice-baked
This part explains everything else about the cookie.
You bake the dough as a log. You slice the log. You bake the slices again. The second bake drives out most of the moisture, and moisture is what makes baked goods go stale.
So mandel bread keeps. For a long time. That is not a happy accident. It is the point. These were cookies made by people who traveled, who sent food to relatives, who needed something that would survive the trip.
Grandma Jeanne packed her suitcase with desserts instead of clothes so she could share them wherever she went. That worked because of the second bake. A softer cookie would have been crumbs by the time she landed.
What goes in it
The traditional version has almonds, which is where the name comes from. But almost every family drifted. Chocolate chips, cinnamon sugar, dried fruit, orange zest, walnuts.
There is no single correct recipe. Every family bent it toward what they liked, and that is part of what makes it interesting. Mandel bread is less a fixed recipe than a technique that traveled.
How to eat it
With coffee or tea, mostly. It is built for dunking, though unlike biscotti, it does not need the dunk.
It shows up year-round rather than at any one holiday. It is not a Rosh Hashanah food or a Hanukkah food. It is the thing that was in the tin.
Frequently asked questions
What is mandel bread?
Mandel bread is a twice-baked Jewish cookie with a delicate crunch on the outside and a softer inside, like a softer biscotti. Despite the name, it is a cookie, not bread.
Is mandel bread the same as mandelbrot?
Yes. Mandelbrot is the Yiddish name. Mandel bread is the anglicized version. Kamishbrot is a related name common in Ukrainian and Russian Jewish families.
What is the difference between mandel bread and biscotti?
Both are twice-baked. Mandel bread is softer, usually made with oil, and Ashkenazi Jewish in origin. Biscotti is harder and Italian.
Why is it called mandel bread if it isn't bread?
The name translates from the Yiddish mandelbrot, meaning almond bread. The dough is baked as a loaf before being sliced and baked again, which is likely where the bread part comes from.
Does mandel bread have almonds in it?
Traditionally yes. Many family recipes use chocolate chips, dried fruit, or other nuts instead. Both are considered authentic.
Is mandel bread Jewish?
Yes. It is an Ashkenazi Jewish cookie from Eastern and Central Europe, eaten year-round rather than tied to a specific holiday.
Where ours comes from
Grandma Jeanne made mandel bread her whole life. She baked well into her nineties and lived to 102. Four generations later we bake her recipe by hand in South Denver, in traditional full-size slices and in a bite-size version we call MandelBites.
You can find it at Denver International Airport, Leevers Locavore, and Spinelli's Market, or see the gift boxes.