Chocolate Pistachio Biscotti

There's something quite indulgent about sitting down for a little "me time" with a hot beverage and a lovely biscotti cookie for dunking.  Biscotti (biss-KO-tee) means "twice-cooked" or "twice-baked", and that's indeed how these cookies are made.  They're first baked in loaf form, then sliced and baked again.  The second baking is what gives them their crunchy, dunkable character.  

Start by placing flour, dutch processed cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt in a mixing bowl.

Whisk together and set aside until needed.

Next, chop the chocolate.  In our house, we like to use a really good quality dark chocolate - I used 85% cocoa here, but you could use something a bit sweeter.  Semi-sweet chocolate usually falls around 60% cocoa.  

In a small mixing bowl, combine the chopped chocolate and brown sugar together and set aside until needed.

You'll also need a couple of large eggs and pure vanilla extract.

And a little instant espresso powder mixed with some hot water.

I love how espresso powder accentuates the flavor of chocolate.

And don't forget the pistachio and craisins.  Chopped dried cherries would be a nice substitution for the craisins.

Now for the fun part - dump everything into a stand mixer fitted with a BeaterBlade or paddle attachment; mix until no traces of dry flour remain.  

The dough should look like this when done.  Now put the dough into a gallon-size zipper bag and chill for about 30 minutes while you preheat your oven. 

Chilling the dough makes it a little easier to handle, but it's still very sticky so I suggest gloving up before handling.  

Press the sticky mass into a 4x10-inch rectangle on a silpat or silicone lined half sheet pan.

See?  I told you the dough was sticky.

Bake as directed, then cool for 20 to 30 minutes, or until you can comfortably handle it.

Transfer the loaf to a cutting board and cut into 1/2-inch thick slices with a serrated knife.

Place each slice onto a silpat or parchment lined half sheet pan and put them back into the oven to bake again, flipping half-way through so both sides crisp up.  

After the cookies have finished baking a 2nd time, allow them to cool completely on a rack, then drizzle with melted white chocolate.  I melted my chocolate in the microwave before pouring it into a plastic zip-top bag.

Snip a very small hole in the corner of the bag and drizzle.  Work quickly - the chocolate will firm up fast. 

There you go.  Leftovers can be stored up to a week or more in an airtight container.  

Happy Dunking!

Chocolate Pistachio Biscotti

makes about 20 cookies

Printable Recipe

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cup all purpose flour

• 1/4 cup Dutch-processed cocoa powder

• 1 teaspoon baking soda

• 1/2 teaspoon fine salt

• 3 ounces bittersweet or dark chocolate, chopped into small pieces

• 3/4 cup light brown sugar

• 2 large eggs

• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

• 1 tablespoon instant espresso powder mixed with 2 tablespoons of hot water

• 1 cup shelled pistachios

• 1/2 cup craisins (or chopped dried cherries)

• melted white chocolate for drizzling

Directions

1. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa, baking soda, and salt; set aside.

2. in a small bowl, combine chopped chocolate and brown sugar; set aside.

3. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with BeaterBlade or paddle attachment, place flour mixture, chocolate mixture, eggs, vanilla, espresso mixture, pistachios, and craisins; mix on medium speed until all traces of dry flour disappear.

4. Wrap cookie dough well with plastic and chill for at least 30 minutes (or up to a week).

5. Preheat oven to 300F and line a half sheet pan with a silpat or parchment paper.

6. Press cookie dough onto prepared sheet pan, forming a 4x10-inch loaf.

7. Bake in preheated oven for 35-40 minutes.

8. Remove from oven and allow loaf to rest for 20-30 minutes before transferring to a cutting board and cutting into 1/2-inch thick slices using a serrated knife.

9. Return sliced cookies to sheet pan and bake for another 6 or 7 minutes per side.

10. Cool cookies completely on a rack before drizzling with melted white chocolate. Leftovers can be stored for a week or more in an airtight container

adapted from Entertaining with Beth

Hearty Italian Wedding Soup

Brrrr - it's getting cold around here.  I hope everyone had a lovely Thanksgiving, finished up all the leftovers, and is ready to start cooking again.  The outside temperature has plummeted and there are few meals better at fighting off a chill than a big bowl of heart-warming soup.  One of our family's favorite is Italian Wedding Soup.  I start by making homemade chicken stock, then I add lots of delicious goodies like incredibly flavorful bite-size turkey meatballs, sauteed vegetables, fresh spinach, and teeny tiny little pasta shapes.  Mmmm - it's so good.

This recipe requires a lot of prep, but it's worth it.  I like to make it on the weekend when I have time to chop veggies and roll mini meatballs to the likes of Beethoven or Bach.

Rather than add the precooked pasta directly to the soup pot, add it to the individual soup bowls just before serving so it doesn't overcook and get mushy.  Also, if you love this soup as much as I think you will, do yourself a favor and make a double batch of everything so you can have a freezer meal ready to go.  Just freeze separately the chicken stock, precooked meatballs, and precooked pasta that has been tossed with a little olive oil.  When you need a quick meal, just heat everything up and add sauteed carrots, celery, and chopped fresh spinach.  

ButterYum's Hearty Italian Wedding Soup

serves 10

Printable Recipes

Ingredients

Meatballs:

• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

• 1/2 cup finely minced onions

• 1 clove finely minced garlic

• pinch of salt

• 1 1/2 pounds of ground turkey

• 3 tablespoons Italian-seasoned bread crumbs

• 2 tablespoons grated Parmesan or Romano cheese

• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil

• 3 scallions, thinly sliced

• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

• 2 eggs, beaten

Soup:

• 8 cups homemade chicken stock

• 4 carrots, diced

• 4 stalks celery, diced

• 5 ounces fresh spinach, tough stems removed and leaves roughly chopped

• 1/2 pound acini di pepe pasta, cooked (or other teeny pasta shape like stars, orzo, etc)

• 1 tablespoon olive oil

• Garnish - sliced scallions, chopped parsley, grated Parmesan or Romano cheese

Directions

For the pasta:

1. Cook pasta in salted water until al dente (a few minutes shy of package directions).

2. Drain pasta and rinse with cold water to stop the cooking process.

3. Drizzle with a little extra virgin olive oil and stir to coat; set aside until needed.

For the meatballs:

1. In a large skillet over medium-high heat, saute the onions and a pinch of salt in olive oil until golden brown; stirring frequently.

2. Add minced garlic and stir constantly until very fragrant, about 30-60 seconds.

3. Remove from heat and allow to cool a bit before adding to the remaining meatball ingredients; mix well.

4. Preheat oven to 350F.

5. Form meat mixture into 80 1-inch meatballs (I use this #100 scoop) and place on greased or lined sheet pan and bake for 10 minutes; remove from oven and cool (no tasting at this point - they're not quite cooked through yet).

To make the soup base:

1. In a large stock pot, bring chicken stock to a gentle boil and add carrots, celery, and partially baked meatballs; cook for 10-15 minutes until carrots soften.

2. Add chopped spinach and cook an additional 5 minutes.

To serve:

1. Keep pasta and soup separate until serving so the pasta doesn't get mushy.

2. Place about 1/4 cup cooked pasta in a bowl and top with a hearty ladle or two of soup (8 meatballs per serving).

3. Garnish with sliced scallions, chopped parsley, and/or grated Parmesan or Romano cheese if desired.

Note

• Make a double batch and freeze some for a meal later. Simply freeze separately the chicken stock, precooked meatballs, and precooked pasta drizzled with olive oil. When you need a quick meal, just heat everything up, add sauteed carrots and celery, and chopped fresh spinach. Sometimes I replace the pasta with cooked wheat berries or quinoa.

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