Chocolate Nut Biscotti - Chocolate With Francois

Happy New Year Everyone!

Chocolate With Francois was supposed to be posted yesterday but lately my favorite expression seems to be better late than never. Better late than never certainly applies to this biscotti, it's some of the best I've ever made. The recipe calls for aniseed, I didn't have any so I omitted it. Also, the nuts used is the recipe are supposed to be a combination of hazelnuts and pistachios. I only had pistachios, so I just used a few more of them. Despite the changes and omissions, the flavor is a nice, slightly orange and chocolatey. These were a perfect sweet treat with my coffee this morning.

Chocolate Nut Biscotti
Recipe courtesy of Francois Payard

Makes 25 Biscotti

3 tablespoons unsalted Butter
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar
Grated zest of 1 orange
2 large eggs
2 cups all purpose flour, plus extra for rolling
1/3 cup Dutch processed cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon aniseed
1 cup shelled pistachios, toasted
1/2 cup hazelnuts, toasted

Place rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Combine the butter, sugar nad orange zest in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Beat on medium speed until the mixture is light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, until well combined.

Add the dry ingredients to the butter mixture and beat on low speed until the ingredients are about halfway combined. Add the pistachios and hazelnuts and beat until everything is just combined.

Lightly dust your work surface with flour and remove the dough to it. Roll the dough into a log 12 inches long and 2 to 3 inches wide. Using your rolling pin, slightly press the log down to flatten its top. This will help the dough spread, to make long biscotti. Bake for about 45 minutes or until the biscotti feels firm when you press on its top. Remove from the oven and let the log cool to room temperature on the baking sheet. Do not turn off the oven.

Using a serrated knife, cut the log diagonally into 1/2 wide slices. Place the slices back on the baking sheet, cut side down and bake for 15 minutes. Remove from the oven. The biscotti will crisp up as they cool.

Once completely cool, store them in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks. You can also store them in the freezer for up to 1 month. Thaw completely in the refrigerator, overnight, before serving.

Sour Cherry (Cranberry) & Almond Biscotti - SMS

Some weeks I am on the fence whether or not to bake SMS. This week, I knew I wanted bake this biscotti. I love biscotti and these flavors sounded delicous. Despite some of the other SMS gals comments about how awesome the dried cherries are, I always to try to use what I have on hand. I use the dried cranberries I had in the cupboard. The recipe called from almond and vanilla extract. No almond extract in the cabinet, so I added a little extra vanilla. This recipe goes together quickly and easily. I thought the dough seemed really wet. Don't you just love those moments where you second guess yourself and wonder if you put in all of the flour? I decided to add another 1/4 cup of flour. I'm glad I did!!! The texture was perfect.

After cutting these for their second bake, I decided to taste one of the ends. Yum! I also thought they seemed done at that point. Based on this, I decided to shorten the second baking time for a less crunchy cookie. The recipe called for baking them an additional 60 minutes. I shortened the time to 30 minutes.




I love this recipe. I can't wait to experiment with the flavors on this one. These are going on my list for this year's holiday treats.

Thanks to Tracey of Made by Tray Tray for choosing this week's awesome recipe. Stop by here to check out all of the other SMS gals biscotti.