Chocolate Biscotti with Pistachios, Almonds and Dried Cherries
Not-too-sugary, crunchy chocolate biscotti—adapted from a recipe in “Maida Heatter’s Best Dessert Book Ever”—studded with pistachios, almonds and dried cherries.
- MakesMakes about 3 dozen biscotti
- Cook Time1¾ hours
- Active time plus cooling45 minutes active, plus cooling
- 8
The late Maida Heatter has about a dozen cookbooks to her name, all of them focused on baking sweets. These biscotti, our adaptation of a recipe from “Maida Heatter’s Best Dessert Book Ever,” are made with a combination of cocoa powder and bittersweet chocolate. With a flavor boost from instant espresso powder, they’re dark and rich and not too sugary. Each satisfyingly crunchy slice—perfect with coffee or dessert wine—is studded with pistachios, almonds and dried cherries. We prefer to use Dutch-processed cocoa here, as it lends the cookies a deeper, darker color than natural cocoa, but natural cocoa works, if that’s what you have on hand. Once the biscotti are fully cooled, they will keep in an airtight container for a few weeks. If they soften slightly during that time, put them into a 250°F oven for about 10 minutes; they will crisp as they cool.
Don’t use chocolate chips in place of the bittersweet chocolate, as chips contain additives that help them retain their shape but give them a waxiness and affect their flavor. Rather, opt for bittersweet chocolate sold in bars or chunks. When chopping the chocolate, aim for pieces no larger than ¼ inch. Large chunks create big pockets of chocolate in the biscotti that reduce their structural integrity.
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