Cranberry Pistachio Biscotti
Biscotti is the Italian term for “twice baked.” These crunchy twice-baked cookies are good with coffee or tea and make a wonderful holiday gift for co-workers or friends. Make a double batch and coat the half with white chocolate and the other half with semi-sweet or dark chocolate.
Source: GOURMET Magazine, November 2007
Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon cardamom
- ¾ cup light brown sugar
- ¼ cup butter, softened
- 2 eggs
- 1 teaspoon lemon zest (finely grated peel)
- 1 cup sweetened, dried cranberries
- 1 cup pistachios, shelled and roughly chopped
- 6 ounces white chocolate
Directions
- Preheat oven to 325°F. Cover a cookie sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
- In a medium bowl combine flour, baking powder, and cardamom. Set aside.
- In another medium bowl beat sugar and butter with a hand mixer until light and fluffy. Add eggs and lemon zest and beat until well blended. Add flour mixture, cranberries, and pistachios, and use a wooden spoon to stir until dough forms.
- Place dough on the buttered cookie sheet and with floured hands form dough into a 12” x 2” log.
- Bake the log at 325°F for 40-45 minutes until golden and slightly cracked on top. Allow to cool on baking sheet for 10 minutes. Remove from baking sheet and, using a serrated bread knife, slice width-wise into 1/2 –inch slices. Add a new sheet of parchment paper to the cookie sheet.
- Place slices, cut side down, on cookie sheet and bake for 10 minutes. Place biscotti on wire cooling racks.
- When the biscotti are all baked and cooled, microwave the chocolate on high in a small glass bowl for 2 minutes, stirring every 30 seconds, until just melted. Dip biscotti base in chocolate and place on parchment paper to set.
Yields: 15 biscotti
