Rose's Baking Basics

Lisa Yockelson’s Deeply Chocolate Biscotti

Makes Twenty-four 4¼ by ¾ by 1¼ inch high cookies

Oven Temperature: 350°F/175°C, then 275°F/135°C

Baking Time: 35 to 40 minutes, then about 20 minutes

Baking Equipment: One 15 by 12 inch cookie sheet, lined with parchment held in place with 4 pieces of masking tape (remove before baking). (If desired, draw two 10 inch by 2½ inch rectangles, about 4 inches apart, on the underside of the parchment to serve as guides.)

Lisa is a very special friend and highly respected colleague who has been included in every one of my recent books, either as the contributor of a special recipe or as the recipient of one that I dedicated to her. These are the best biscotti I’ve ever tasted. They are marvelously crunchy and are delicious eaten on their own or dipped into coffee or milk. I am thrilled to share this unique recipe.

Makes 1100 grams dough

unsalted butter	113 grams	8 tablespoons (1 stick)
2 large eggs	100 grams	⅓ cup plus 1 tablespoon (94 ml)
1 egg yolk	13 grams	2½ teaspoons (12.5 ml)
strong coffee, freshly brewed	20 grams	4 teaspoons (20 ml)
fine-quality unsweetened or 99% cacao chocolate, chopped	20 grams	0.7 ounce
bleached all-purpose flour	290 grams	2⅓ cups (lightly spooned into the cup and leveled off) plus 1 tablespoon
unsweetened alkalized cocoa powder	56 grams	¾ cup (sifted before measuring)
cornstarch	6 grams	2 teaspoons
baking powder	4.5 grams	1 teaspoon
fine sea salt	4 grams	¾ teaspoon
sugar, preferably superfine	200 grams	1 cup
pure vanilla extract	.	2½ teaspoons (12.5 ml)
dark chocolate chips, 55% to 63% cacao	283 grams	1⅔ cups (10 ounces)
granulated sugar, for topping the dough	37 grams	3 tablespoons

Preheat the Oven

▪ Twenty minutes or longer before baking, set an oven rack at the middle level. Set the oven at 350ºF/175ºC.

Mise en Place

▪ About 1 hour ahead, set the butter and eggs on the counter at room temperature (65º to 75ºF/19º to 24ºC).

▪ Into a 1 cup measure with a spout, weigh or measure the eggs and egg yolk. Whisk lightly and cover with plastic wrap.

▪ Into a small bowl, weigh or measure the hot coffee, cover with plastic wrap, and cool to room temperature.

▪ Melt the chocolate: About 30 minutes before baking, melt the chopped chocolate: In a small microwavable bowl, stirring with a silicone spatula every 15 seconds, heat the chocolate in the microwave until almost completely melted. (Alternatively, melt the chocolate in the top of a double boiler over hot, not simmering water—do not let the bottom of the container touch the water—stirring often with a silicone spatula.) Remove the chocolate from the heat source and stir until fully melted. Let it cool until it is no longer warm to the touch but still fluid (80º to 85ºF/27º to 29ºC).

▪ In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa, cornstarch, baking powder, and salt. Sift the flour mixture onto a sheet of parchment.

Make the Dough

1. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the flat beater, beat the butter on medium speed until smooth and creamy, about 2 minutes.

2. With the mixer on, add the sugar in 3 parts, beating for 45 seconds after each addition. Scrape down the sides of the bowl.

3. With the mixer on medium-low speed, gradually add the eggs and egg yolk and beat just until incorporated. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. The mixture will not be smooth.

4. Add the coffee, melted chocolate, and vanilla and beat for about 30 seconds. Scrape down the sides of the bowl.

5. Add half the sifted flour mixture and mix on low speed just until the flour is absorbed. Add the remaining flour mixture together with the chocolate chips and mix just until the flour is absorbed.

6. Scrape the dough into 2 rough strips, 550 grams each, on the lined cookie sheet.

7. Lightly wet your fingers and shape each strip evenly into a 10 by 2½ inch rectangle on the parchment (if you drew rectangles on the parchment, use them as a guide). The dough will be about 1 inch high. (Alternatively, cover each strip with plastic wrap. Use your fingers or a rolling pin to smooth and lengthen the tops, and a bench scraper, butted up against the sides, to shape into even rectangles. Formed in this way the biscotti will be a little lower and wider in shape when baked.) Remove the masking tape.

8. Heavily sprinkle the top of each rectangle with the granulated sugar.

Bake the Rectangles

9. Bake the rectangles for 20 minutes. For even baking, rotate the cookie sheet halfway around. Continue baking for 15 to 20 minutes, or until set, baked through, and a wooden skewer comes out clean.

10. Reduce the oven temperature to 275ºF/135ºC.

Cool the Rectangles

11. Set the cookie sheet on a wire rack and let the rectangles cool for 10 minutes.

Cut the Biscotti

12. Slip an offset spatula underneath the baked rectangles to loosen them from the parchment. Carefully transfer one rectangle to a cutting board.

13. Using a serrated knife, slice the rectangle on an angle into 12 cookies, slightly under 1 inch wide. Return them, cut side down, to the cookie sheet.

14. Repeat with the second rectangle.

Bake the Biscotti

15. Bake the cookies for 20 minutes, or until they are firm and dry, turning them over once or twice during the baking time. The cut surfaces of the cookies should appear dry on both sides. (Avoid overbaking so as not to compromise the flavor.)

Cool the Biscotti

16. Let the biscotti sit on the cookie sheet on a wire rack for 5 minutes. Use tongs to transfer the biscotti carefully to a wire rack. Cool completely. Biscotti keep well but have the fullest flavor within the first 3 days after baking.

Store Airtight: room temperature, 3 weeks; frozen, 3 months.

Baking Pearls

Use your favorite chocolate chips. The chocolate chips add flavor and a contrast of texture to the biscotti. You can vary the contrast in the texture depending on the size of the chocolate chips.

If you have a convection option for your oven, it works especially well to dry the biscotti. Most convection ovens require lowering the temperature by 25°F/15°C.

Making Deeply Chocolate Biscotti