Chocolate Pistachio Biscotti

I was in the bookstore the other day and spotted Martha Stewart’s book on cookies. Even though I have enough recipes on cookies, I flipped through the book and found this intriguing one on biscotti. No one in my house refuses chocolate and since I made cranberry and pistachio biscotti last Christmas, which every one enjoyed, chocolate biscotti would be welcomed as well. Chocolate has been around for more then 1,500 years and we have the ancient Aztecs and the Maya in Mexico and Central America to thank. Dark chocolate with high cocoa content (minimum 70%), is high in flavonoids (epicatechin and gallic acid). Cocoa also has polyphenol antioxidant properties, countering low density lipoproteins (LDL – levels of “bad” cholesterol) as a result. Click here to read more on cocoa.

Makes 20 biscotti (depending how thick it’s sliced)
recipe from Martha Stewart

6 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature, plus more for baking sheet
2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for baking sheet
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup sugar
2 large eggs
1 cup shelled pistachio nuts
1/2 cup chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 180c (350f). Butter and flour a baking sheet; set aside. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs; beat until well combined, scraping down sides of bowl if necessary. Add flour mixture, and stir to form a stiff dough. Stir in pistachios and chocolate chips.

Transfer dough to prepared baking sheet; form into a slightly flattened log, about 12 by 4 inches. Bake until slightly firm, about 25 minutes. Cool on a wire rack for about 5 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 300 degrees. On a cutting board, using a sharp serrated knife, cut biscotti diagonally into 1-inch-thick slices. Arrange biscotti, cut sides down, on baking sheet, and bake until crisp but still slightly soft in the center, about 8 minutes.

The Culinary Chase’s Note: I used semi-sweet chocolate chips as well as non-stick baking paper to put on the tray. Imagine chocolate cake with pistachios and you have the taste of this treat! Delicious!