Triple Chocolate Gingerbread Biscotti

by Holly Hanks on December 24th, 2010 | No Comments »

A few years ago I made biscotti for the first time. For whatever reason, it wasn't something I thought about making myself before. In fact, it wasn't even a favorite treat of mine. The versions in various bakeries and stores were so ho-hum, dry, flavorless and generally just a disappointment that it wasn't really even on my radar.

Then, thanks to one of my baking clubs, we made an almond biscotti recipe that has since been one of my all time favorite treats. I fiddled with that recipe as well, because while I do like a good crunch biscotti, I like it slightly softer with a little chew, not rock hard.
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Since then, I've made several versions of homemade biscotti's, but possibly my favorite unique version is this recipe for a holiday worthy gift—a rich, deep chocolate flavored biscotti with a good crunch, but not too hard. Lots of bittersweet chocolate chips and white chocolate chips for contrast and a good gingerbread flavor underneath for that added oomph and holiday spice. This Triple Chocolate Gingerbread Biscotti is a real winner, especially when dipped in a cup of hot chocolate like the Salted Caramel Hot Chocolate recipe.

While technically, because of the cocoa powder in the biscotti, I guess these could be called a quadruple chocolate. The triple in the title refers to the amounts of actual chocolate in the cookie. The cookie dough itself has, not only cocoa for depth, but melted chocolate for extra richness and chocolatey flavor. Add in the two kinds of chocolate chips and you are well on your way to some of the best chocolate biscotti you've ever had. If you really want to go over the top, you could drizzle more melted chocolate or dip these in chocolate after they are cooled, but honestly, they don't need it. And that's saying a lot from a chocoholic like me!

So, if you have last minute gift giving to put together, mix up a batch of chocolate mix, bake off a pan of biscotti and enjoy as the oohs and ahhs roll in. Happy Holidays!

Triple Chocolate Gingerbread Biscotti

Recipe by Holly Hanks at PheMOMenon

Ingredients

2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
¾ cup good quality Dutch cocoa powder
1 ½ teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2 ½ teaspoons ground ginger
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
¼ teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon ground allspice
pinch of ground cloves
1 stick (8 tablespoons) unsalted butter, softened
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1/3 cup unsulphered molasses
½ cup packed light brown sugar
½ cup sugar
3 ½ ounces good quality semi-sweet chocolate, melted and cooled
¾ cup white chocolate chips
¾ cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 tablespoon confectioners’ sugar

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment, set aside.
In a bowl whisk together the flour, cocoa, baking soda, salt, ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice and cloves. Set aside.
In the bowl of a stand mixer with paddle attachment, beat together the softened butter, brown sugar and sugar, on medium speed until fluffy—about 2 minutes. Turn the machine off, scrape down the sides and add the eggs, vanilla and molasses. Turn the machine on to low to incorporate, about 1 minute, then turn up to medium speed and beat until smooth and a little fluffy. Add the melted, cooled chocolate and beat 1 minute more to mix well.
Turn the mixer off and add all the dry ingredient mixture. Turn the machine on low speed and incorporate the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients until well combined. Add the chocolate chips (and candied ginger if using) and combine well to make a very stiff dough.
Use a spatula or bowl scraper to divide the dough in the bowl in half and place half the dough onto the prepared baking sheet, down one side (you’ll be making two logs, lengthwise, on the same sheet). Use floured hands to shape the dough into a 14-inch by 2-inch log (about 2 inches high). Repeat down the other side of the baking sheet so you have two logs. You’ll end up with each log being about 2-inches from the sides of the pan, with about 4-inches in between down the center of the sheet.
Sift the confectioners’ sugar onto the two logs. Place the baking sheet on a rack centered in the oven and bake the logs 35 minutes. Remove the sheet from the oven and let the logs cool for 10 minutes. Carefully pull the parchment lined sheet off the baking sheet and onto a cutting surface. Use a sharp knife to cut the logs on a slight diagonal angle into about 17 pieces each. Place the cut pieces back onto the baking sheet and bake them for the second time for 12 minutes. Remove them from the oven and let them cool on the baking sheet.
Store in an airtight container for 1 week. In the freezer they keep for up to a month.

Holly blogs at PheMOMenon and Sweet & Simple about the adventures of life with two wild little boys and one very sweet baby girl with Down syndrome. She is also married to a professional skydiver. This all makes for an interesting life at their house. So, in an attempt to keep what sanity motherhood and marriage have left her with, she is trying to conquer her world, one recipe at a time. It’s cheaper than therapy, and much more tasty! She is also the creator of The Hive—the blog forum for food bloggers in Utah.