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Satisfy your chocolate craving without any of the guilt! These Dark Chocolate Almond Biscotti are lightly sweetened and studded with nutritious ingredients like dark chocolate and almonds. Serve them with a cup of coffee or a cappuccino and you've got the perfect snack or dessert.

Two pieces of chocolate biscotti on a white plate.

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What Is Biscotti?
Interesting Fact:
Dark Chocolate Almond Biscotti
How To Make This Dish
Chef's Tip
Recipe Notes
Health Benefits of Dark Chocolate
More Tasty Desserts
Recipe
Reviews

What Is Biscotti?

Biscotti are traditional centuries-old Italian cookies that are baked twice to make them dry and crispy. The word biscotti is derived from “bis” meaning “twice” in Italian and “cotto” meaning baked or cooked.

When making biscotti, the dough is typically shaped into a log and baked. Then the cooked dough is sliced diagonally into cookies and baked a second time to produce a crispy, hard texture.

The process of baking twice draws out any moisture, giving the biscotti a long shelf life.

Interesting Fact:

Because of their good storage ability, when biscotti were created many centuries ago, they were a common staple for sailors and soldiers who were often away for months at a time.

In Italy, biscotti are traditionally served after dinner with vin santo, a sweet dessert wine, but they are also commonly served with cappuccinos and other coffee drinks. Their long shape makes them ideal for dunking.

Dark Chocolate Almond Biscotti

I’m so excited about this recipe because I often find it difficult to create desserts that are nutritious and not packed with sugar. My Dark Chocolate Almond Biscotti are crispy, lightly sweetened and studded with nutritious ingredients like dark chocolate and almonds. If you're not a chocolate fan, try my Cranberry Pine Nut Biscotti recipe.

Traditional biscotti are a naturally healthy dessert compared to most cookies because they don’t contain any fat in the form of butter or oil. In fact, the moisture comes solely from eggs.

Some American versions of biscotti do use butter in the dough to produce a more tender cookie. However, my recipe sticks with tradition, which makes it a much healthier option

How To Make This Dish

collage of steps 1-4 how to make dark chocolate almond biscotti.

Step 1- Beat eggs, sugar, and vanilla in a stand mixer with the paddle attachment. Add the dry ingredients and mix until a dough forms. Add the dark chocolate and almonds.
Step 2- Divide dough in half and roll it out into two logs. Place them on a sheet pan and flatten them slightly.
Step 3- Bake 26-30 minutes at 350 degrees F.
Step 4- Remove from oven and cool slightly. Then, cut the legs into ½-inch slices. Arrange the slices upright on the sheet pan and bake an additional 15-20 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool on a wire rack before serving.

Chef's Tip

For an extra chocolaty treat, dip one end of the biscotti into melted chocolate and let it harden before serving.

Recipe Notes

To incorporate whole grains into this Dark Chocolate Almond Biscotti, I use a 50:50 mix of white whole wheat flour and all-purpose flour.

To make the dough nice and chocolaty, I add good quality unsweetened cocoa powder along with some instant espresso powder. The addition of espresso powder is something I’ve learned from watching countless episodes of Barefoot Contessa. It doesn’t really add a strong coffee flavor but rather serves to intensify the chocolate.

I also like to add a secret ingredient to my biscotti, which is cinnamon (I guess the secret's out now!). I love the combination of cinnamon and chocolate and it produces the most heavenly smell while it’s baking.

For a touch of sweetness, I use a combination of brown and granulated sugar. But remember, this is not an overly sweet cookie. To add texture, I stir in slivered almonds and chunks of dark chocolate, both of which have some impressive health benefits.

Almonds are packed with unsaturated fats and other nutrients that have been shown to have a beneficial effect on heart health. Read more about the health benefits of almonds and other nuts.

Health Benefits of Dark Chocolate

Finally, there’s the dark chocolate. Who would have thought that something so decadent could be good for you?

It turns out that chocolate, which is made from the cocoa bean, is filled with a type of plant nutrient called flavonoids. These flavonoids have antioxidant properties that help the body resist damage from normal bodily processes and environmental contaminants.

In addition to antioxidant properties, the flavonoids found in chocolate (called flavanols) also have beneficial effects on cardiovascular health such as lowering blood pressure and improving blood flow to the brain and heart. These compounds are not unique to chocolate- they’re also found in other food and beverages like cranberries, apples, tea and red wine.

Because pure cocoa has a very naturally strong, bitter taste, chocolate goes through a lot of processing to create the sweet treats that we all love. The more the chocolate is processed, the more flavanols are lost.

The good news is that most chocolate manufacturers are now trying to find ways to preserve the number of flavanols in their chocolate. If you have a choice, choose dark chocolate, 70% cacao or higher, over other varieties like milk chocolate or white chocolate, which are loaded with other fats and sugar.

The cacao content of chocolate refers to the percentage of components derived from the cocoa bean. The remainder is made up of sugar, flavorings and other ingredients. The higher the percentage cacao, the greater the number of healthy flavanols.

When using cocoa powder, go for the natural unsweetened cocoa powder rather than the Dutch processed variety (cocoa powder that’s treated with an alkali to reduce its acidity). And no matter what variety you choose, remember to enjoy chocolate in moderation, about 1 ounce a few times a week.

So go ahead and enjoy one or two of my delicious biscotti. You can satisfy your chocolate craving without any of the guilt. In the words of Ina Garten, "How bad can that be?!"

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