Name: Grandma Vivardo's Cherry Pistachio Biscotti
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 44 min
Total time: 74 min
Yield: 25 biscotti
Ingredients: For the Biscotti; 1⁄4 cup light olive oil; 3⁄4 cup granulated sugar; 2 teaspoons vanilla extract; 2 teaspoons orange or lemon zest; 2 large eggs; 1 3⁄4 cups all-purpose flour; 1⁄4 teaspoon salt; 1 teaspoon baking powder; 1⁄2 cup dried cherries; 1 cup unsalted shelled pistachios, coarsely chopped; 10 ounces white baking chocolate; 2 teaspoons solid vegetable shortening; 1⁄2 cup finely chopped pistachios; Green and red crystallized sugar (optional)

Sweets

Grandma Vivardo's Cherry Pistachio Biscotti

Author: Mary DiSomma

My Grandma Vivardo introduced these crunchy biscuits to me when I was a little girl. Her recipe is delicately flavored with anise (which I love), but for the holidays I like a red and green biscuit for dunking in my coffee. And of all my biscotti recipes, my cherry pistachio biscotti are the ones I have to put on my Christmas cookie platter. Of course, they also happen to hold up beautifully packed, so they make for a tasty Christmas cookie gift for friends and family.

The dried cherry and pistachio add more than just color to biscotti. The chewy dried fruit and the soft pistachio gives you a break between each crunchy bite of cookie. But for a festive touch, I dip these biscuits in white chocolate and sprinkle them with red and green sugar. Plus, they’re so much fun to decorate!

Grandma Vivardo's Cherry Pistachio Biscotti

A Gift of Cookies: Recipes to Share with Family & Friends, Front Cover

Ingredient Tips

Biscotti are a type of cookie, but the approach is a bit different. Biscotti are first baked into a loaf, sliced like bread, then baked a second time as individual pieces. This process draws out moisture, making them the perfect dunkable “cookie” because they’re crunchy and have a long shelf life. You can store biscotti in an airtight container for up to three weeks without refrigeration. Of course, that’s if they last that long!

Preparation + Preservation Tips

My number one tip for making biscotti at home is to be careful not to over-bake them! I like to keep an eye on mine, and I will check on them 5 minutes before the baking time is up, just in case. Factors like humidity can affect your baking too, after all. Because this recipe has honey in it, it tends to brown more quickly than sugar. I highly recommend keeping an eye on your biscotti too!

To avoid cracks on the top of the biscotti loaves, cover them with dish towels after removing them from the oven, as this allows them to cool at a more leisurely pace.

Biscotti are known for being extra hard. That’s because they’re baked twice. The dough is formed into logs and baked at a low temperature until they’re about the consistency and texture of a sugar cookie. They’re then slightly cooled and sliced before being baked a second time to dry them out completely.
They’re perfect for dunking just like that, but while some recipes use butter and others don’t use any fat, for my biscotti recipe, I like to use olive oil to make the biscotti crisp and tender.