Chocolate biscotti

On days like this, when the clouds are thick, dark and saturated with rain, when the plants look droopy and the streets are almost empty and silent, I forget that it's sunny somewhere else in the world. I forget that soon, the seasons will change again and I won't need that extra shot of espresso to feel good because the air will carry the smells of spring. On days like this, I embrace my mood and I bake chocolate biscotti.

Since I've previously had success with Dorie Greenspan's almond cornmeal biscotti, I decided to give her chocolate biscotti recipe a try. The flavor was great - dark, dense, chocolaty with smoky notes of espresso and a crunch of almonds (although I think hazelnuts would have worked better, but I didn't have them around). Alas, they were crumbly - very very crumbly. What did I do wrong? The recipe said that the tops will crack a bit, and not only did the tops crack quite a lot, but I had such trouble slicing them after the first bake AND after the second bake, that at least a few had to be sent to that great biscotti gig in the sky (aka, A.'s afternoon tea). Also, and this is a minor complaint since they did taste great, these biscotti weren't very pretty. Does anyone have a chocolate biscotti recipe that works better than this one? Help!



Chocolate Biscotti
(Dorie Greenspan, Baking)

Ingredients

2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 tbsp instant coffee or instant espresso powder
3/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
6 tbsp unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup sugar (I always use a bit less, more like 3/4)
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup chopped almonds (or hazelnuts - next time)
4 oz bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment or a silicone baking mat.

Sift together the flour, cocoa, coffee powder, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.

With a mixer, cream the butter and sugar on medium speed for about 2 minutes until light. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and add the eggs and vanilla; beat for another 2 minutes. Decrease the speed to low and mix in the dry ingredients in 3 additions, mixing only until a dough forms. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and mix in the chopped nuts and chocolate.

Turn the dough out onto a work surface and knead a few times just to incorporate any dry ingredients that didn't get mixed in before. Divide into two portions; on the baking sheet, shape each portion into a 12 x 2 inch log. Dust the tops with a little sugar (to make them look pretty, I'm assuming). Bake for 25 minutes.

Remove the sheet from the oven and let it cool on a rack for 20 minutes. Then, with a very sharp, serrated knife, slice the logs into about 3/4 - 1 inch slices and leave the slices standing up on the baking sheet (some people lay them down, but I like both sides to get crispy). Return to the oven for another 10-15 minutes of baking.

Transfer biscotti to a rack to cool.