Chocolate-Dipped Pistachio-Orange Biscotti

Submitted by: NPR Broadcast

Chocolate-Dipped Pistachio-Orange Biscotti

Present the biscotti in a beautiful tin or on a new serving plate, wrapped tightly in clear plastic with ribbons. Pair with new baking sheets and a basket of winter tangerines.

These twice-baked cookies are laced with crystallized ginger, tangerine rind and tangerine juice, and then dipped into semi-sweet chocolate to create a crunchy, satisfying biscotti. Serve with hot chocolate, tiny cups of strong espresso, or a pot of tea.

Ingredients:
2 cups, plus 2 tablespoons flour, plus more for dusting
1 cup sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup cold unsalted butter (1/2 stick), cut into 4 pieces
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 packed teaspoon freshly grated tangerine or orange zest
1/4 cup tangerine orange juice, preferably fresh-squeezed
½ cup very thinly sliced or chopped crystallized ginger
1/2 pound semi-sweet or bittersweet chocolate, about 55%, chopped

Directions

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
• In a large bowl, stir the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt together until blended. 
• Add the butter and blend into dry ingredients using your fingertips or a pastry cutter, until the mixture resembles coarse sand. 
• Mix the eggs, vanilla, zest, and juice in a separate bowl until well blended. 
• Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and stir with a wooden spoon until ingredients are just blended. Fold in the ginger.
• Generously flour a clean working area. 
• Using floured hands, divide the dough into two equal portions. 
• Form each piece into a flat log roughly 12-inches long by 2-inches wide by 1-inch high, adding additional flour as needed to prevent the dough from sticking to the counter. 
• Repeat with remaining dough. Carefully place logs 2 to 3 inches apart on the parchment-covered baking sheet.
• Bake the logs for 25 minutes on the middle shelf, or until firm to the touch and just beginning to brown. Remove from the oven and let cool, about 10 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 300 degrees.
• Transfer the logs to a cutting board. 
• Using a sharp, serrated knife, cut logs on a slight diagonal into 1/2-inch wide pieces with a gentle “sawing” motion. 
• Place the biscotti on the unbaked side on the baking sheet(s).
•  Bake an additional 30 minutes, turning biscotti once halfway through baking. Biscotti should be firm to the touch and golden brown on both sides. 
• Remove from baking sheet and cool completely on wire racks.

While the biscotti are cooling,..

• place the chopped chocolate in a small, wide skillet and place over very low heat, stirring continuously. 
• When almost all of chocolate has melted, remove from the heat and let rest 5 minutes. 
• Dip one flat side of each biscotti into the chocolate and hold vertically to let excess chocolate drip off. 
• Place biscotti chocolate-side up on wax paper to cool until the chocolate hardens, about 3 to 4 hours. 
• The biscotti will keep, in a cool, dark, well-sealed tin or plastic bag, for several days.

Favorites Variations:

• Add 2 cup pistachios, almonds, pine nuts, or hazelnuts—finely chop 1 cup and keep 1 cup whole.
• Dip the biscotti into white or milk chocolate instead of dark chocolate.
• For double-chocolate pistachio biscotti, sift 1/4 cup high-quality cocoa powder into the dry ingredients.

Makes: about 3 dozen biscotti.