I love a good biscotti – in fact, I would much rather have a biscotti than a cookie any day of the week.  I didn’t always feel that way though, over the years I have grown to love that crunchy-not-too-sweet cookie.  I remember when I went to college, and my grandmother sent me a care package.  I was so excited, I ripped the box open, and there was a big tin of Mandel Bread.  I was a little let down.  Yes, I did love anything she made for me, but Mandel Bread was just not my favorite.  It was hard and crunchy, and not very sweet – but my grandmother was smart.  Mandel Bread stays fresh for days, even weeks, in a container.  At that point I didn’t drink coffee – but now that I think back to that delicious Mandel Bread, it would have been perfect dunked into a strong cup of espresso.

So – over the past few weeks, with the end of the school year – things have been a little crazier than usual.   In addition, work has been keeping me extremely busy these days, starting very early in the morning and going late into the evenings.  I have had a lot of baking to do for specific events, and I have had to choose my baked goods very carefully – looking particularly for ones I can bake ahead of time.  I found this recipe in Bon Appetit, and I knew they would last at least the three days they mentioned in the text.  Usually I like to make biscotti and coat them in chocolate, but the dried cherries with the pistachios looked so flavorful that I would be able to skip a step.  These were outstanding – so nice and crunchy, and chock full of cherries.   They had a wonderful flavor that went perfectly with a nice cup of espresso.  I think they were a big hit at the event I made them for…and fortunately I was good and ready and not stressed beforehand.  Thanks Nan for turning me onto these amazing treats…

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350°. Line a large rimmed baking sheet with  parchment paper. Combine first 6 ingredients in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted  with a paddle. Blend on low speed for 30 seconds. Meanwhile, in a separate bowl,  whisk together eggs and next 5 ingredients. Add egg mixture to flour mixture;  beat on low speed until combined, about 1 1/2 minutes. Fold in cherries and  pistachios.

Transfer dough to a lightly floured surface; divide in half.  Using floured hands, shape each dough half into a 16″-long log. Brush off excess  flour; transfer logs to prepared sheet, spaced 5″ apart. Flatten each log into a  2″-wide strip. Bake, rotating sheet halfway through, until browned and set,  about 30 minutes. Transfer to a rack; let cool for 15 minutes. Reduce oven to  250° and arrange 1 rack in top third of oven and 1 rack in bottom  third.

Line a second baking sheet with parchment paper. Transfer  biscotti to a work surface. Using a serrated knife, cut each strip diagonally  into 2/3″-thick slices. Arrange slices, cut side down, on baking  sheets.

Bake biscotti, rotating baking sheets halfway through, until  crisp, about 40 minutes. Transfer baking sheets to racks; let cool.

DO  AHEAD Can be made at least 3 days ahead. Store in an airtight container at room  temperature.

For a printer-friendly version of this recipe, please click here: Pistachio and Dried-Cherry Biscotti