I've been trying to find new biscotti to add to my holiday food baskets. The baskets are sent as token gifts to our neighbors at Christmas, but my schedule, of late, has been so frantic that those gifts will be much simpler than in years past. If all goes well, the baskets  will contain small holiday breads and the standard sweets, but I also wanted to tuck a new "dunkable" in with the other cookies that I plan to make. I've been testing some recipes that sounded interesting to me, and while I haven't decided if this biscotti will make the final cut, I can tell you they would be a wonderful addition to the baskets. They are dense and crunchy and intensely chocolate and my failure to reserve a place for them is only because I still have more recipes to test.  Having made and generously sampled the biscotti, I'm completely comfortable in passing this recipe, originally developed for Eating Well magazine, on to the chocolate lovers among you. I think you'll really like them. The biscotti are very easy to make and if you store them in an airtight container you'll find them to be good keepers. Here's how they are made.

Double Chocolate Biscotti

Ingredients:

1-1/2 cups whole-wheat pastry flour

1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder

1-1/4 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

3 large eggs

1 large egg yolk

1 cup sugar

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

5 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped, or chocolate chips, melted (see Cooking Tip)

Directions:

1) Position rack in the center of the oven; preheat to 325°F. Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.

2) Whisk whole-wheat flour, all-purpose flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a large bowl.

3) In another large bowl, beat eggs, egg yolk and sugar (or Splenda) with an electric mixer until thick and pale yellow, about 2 minutes. Beat in vanilla and melted chocolate. Stir in the dry ingredients with a wooden spoon until just moistened.

4) Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface; knead for 1 minute, then divide in half. Roll each piece into an 8-inch log; flatten slightly to about 3/4 inch high and 3 1/2 inches wide. Place the logs side by side on one of the prepared baking sheets.

5) Bake until lightly browned and firm, about 20 minutes. Cool on the pan on a wire rack for 20 minutes. Keep the oven on; switch the oven racks to the upper and lower thirds of the oven. Slice the logs on the diagonal into cookies 1/2 inch thick. Arrange, cut-side down, on the 2 baking sheets. Bake for 10 minutes. Turn the biscotti over and rotate the pans from top to bottom; bake until dry, 15 to 20 minutes more. Transfer to a wire rack to cool. Yield 32 biscotti.

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