Chocolate Hazelnut Biscotti

***I have a new obsession...It comes in the form of a crunchy cookie that when dipped in coffee becomes one of the most decadent bits of deliciousness that I could imagine.  What is this, you say?  Biscotti, of course!! 

I posted a recipe for Dreamy Coconut Biscotti  back a few weeks ago, that really was the stuff that dreams are made of...haha.  I wanted to try another biscotti recipe, and this one for Chocolate Hazelnut Biscotti sounded amazing for two reasons:

#1.  I recently purchased a big bag of the most beautiful whole hazelnuts that I needed just the right recipe for.

#2.  Chocolate - That's the best reason I can think of to make anything!

In one bite of this heavenly biscotti, you might get equal parts crunchy goodness from the hazelnuts, and equal parts gooey goodness from the chocolate morsels.  Like any good biscotti, they are incredibly crunchy on their own, but when dipped into your favorite coffee, they become the perfect consistency.  They have the most fantastic hazelnutty flavor, too.

I found this recipe over at Fresh From the Oven.  She took Martha Stewart's recipe and made a few of her own changes.  The only change that I made was in the size of the biscotti cookies.  Instead of three smaller logs, I made one larger one.  Because of this, I did have to bake mine a good bit longer to make sure that they were baked all the way through.

Be careful...You might just become biscotti-obsessed too if you make these!!

Bon Appetit!!***

Chocolate Hazelnut Biscotti
adapted and modified from Martha Stewart's Baking Handbook

2 1/4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1/4 cup dutch-processed cocoa powder
1 tsp baking soda
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
1 tsp kosher salt
1 1/2 cups(about 8 ounces) blanched hazelnuts
2 cups semisweet or bittersweet chocolate chips
4 large eggs, at room temperature
1 eggwhite for glaze (optional), at room temperature
Sanding sugar (or granulated)for sprinkling (optional)

Preheat oven to 350F. Line two large baking sheet with parchment paper. Set aside.

In a food processor, pulse the flour, cocoa,baking soda,salt, 2 cups of chocolate morsels and hazelnuts, until chocolate chunks and hazelnuts are the size of peas. *if you don't have a food processor, coarsely chop the nuts and chocolate and sieve the flour.

In a bowl of electric mixer fitted with whisk attachment, beat the whole eggs, and granulated sugar until the mixture holds a ribbon-like trail on the surface for a few seconds when you raise the whisk.

Switch to the paddle attachment. With mixer on low speed, add the flour mixture. When it's well combined, add in the nuts and chocolate and stir by hand, using a large spatula.

Martha Stewart's proper way:
Turn out dough onto a lightly floured work surface, and divide into 3 equal pieces. Shape each pieces into an 18 inch log. Transfer to prepared baking sheet. With the palm of your hand, gently press the logs to flatten slighlt. Brush egg wash over logs. Sprinkle with sanding sugar if using.

OR

Mandy's lazy not messy way:
Using the spatula as a guide, drop the dough by spoonful into a 2.5-inches wide and 18-inches long log directly onto the parchment paper. Slightly flatten it to 1/2-inch thick. Leave 2 inches space between logs.*** Brush eggwash over logs. Sprinkle with granulated sugar, if using.

Bake, rotating pan halfway through, until logs are just firm to the touch, 20-24 minutes. Transfer baking sheets to a wire rack to cool completely, about 20 minutes.

When the logs are cool enough to handle, use a serrated knife to cut biscotti log on the diagonal, into 1/4-inch thick, or if you like, 3/4-inch thick (which is more durable to be send off as care package.

Place a wire rack on a large rimmed baking sheet. Arrange slices, cut sides down on the rack.Bake until biscottis are firm to the touch and completely dry. 10 to 12 minutes.

Remove pans from the oven;Let biscottis cool completely on the rack. They can be kept in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 weeks. I keep them in the freezer when I don't feel like sharing with others. They can be kept there for months.