Dessert, Recipes

Cherry Pistachio Biscotti

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Baked twice for the perfect crunch, and just the right balance of sweet and salty. These Cherry Pistachio Biscotti are sure to add some festive cheer to your table. 

The holiday season is a big deal around here. From delicious food to festive cheer, the holidays always brings on lots of good feelings and nostalgia. And there’s nothing more nostalgic than the food you grew up eating during the holiday season – even better when it’s cookies.

Every Christmas Kat’s family would whip up many batches of these Cherry Pistachio Biscotti and keep them in the freezer ready to go for snacking and gifting. It’s no wonder this was one of the first recipes Kat ever veganized.

Biscotti are a twice baked Italian cookie that’s super crunchy and delicious. It also makes a great holiday cookie as it’s each to whip up a big batch and store in the freezer. Our Cherry Pistachio Biscotti are the perfect balance of sweet and salty thanks to the use of maraschino cherries and salted pistachios.

Why you’ll love this recipe: 

  • Golden brown and crunchy.
  • Super easy to make.
  • Perfect for a big batch.

Each batch makes two logs of cookies which is about 24 cookies, depending on how you cut them. When it’s the holiday season no one has time for small batch cookies. You have to be efficient to get all your holiday baking done. They take longer to make than the average cookie, but trust us when we say it’s 100% worth it.

Top tips for making Cherry Pistachio Biscotti:

  • Use a stand mixer. Previously we’ve made this dough with our hands and while that definitely still works. We’ve updated this recipe to use the stand mixer so that you can save yourself some work during the busy holiday season.
  • Don’t overmix the dough. Mix until just combined to avoid and overworked dough. Overmixing can lead to tough cookies. 
  • Let the cookie logs cool completely. For the best slicing we like to let the cookie logs cool completely, even overnight if you have the time. This results the cleanest slice. 
  • Use a sharp knife to slice. For the best slice a sharp chef’s knife is the best option. 
  • Bake until lightly golden. For the second bake you’re looking for the cookies to dry out and achieve a light golden brown colour. 

Pro tip: Cherry Pistachio Biscotti are freeze-able at every stage. Freeze the dough, after the first bake or after the second. Just freeze and you have biscotti forever!

How to make Cherry Pistachio Biscotti:

Vegan Cherry Pistachio Biscotti

The holiday cookie favourite is a winner! Salty and sweet, these Cherry Pistachio Biscotti are a must-bake cookie.
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Course: Dessert
Cuisine: Italian
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 1 hour
Total Time: 1 hour 14 minutes
Servings: 24 cookies

Ingredients

  • 113 g (½ cup) vegan butter, softened
  • 200 g (1 cup) brown sugar
  • 2 flax eggs, (2 tbsp ground flax + 6 tbsp water)
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • ½ tsp almond extract
  • 300 g (2 ½ cups) all-purpose flour
  • 1 ½ tsp baking powder
  • 1 cup pistachios, roughly chopped
  • 1 cup maraschino cherries, patted dry

Instructions

Before You Start: Remove the vegan butter from the fridge to soften at room temperature and prepare the flax eggs.

  • Preheat oven to 325°F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.
  • Beat softened butter in a stand mixer (or hand mixer) for 3-4 minutes or until light and fluffy. Add the flax eggs and continue to beat for an additional 2-3 minutes or until combined. Beat in the vanilla and almond extracts.
  • Mix the all-purpose flour and baking powder to the butter mixture until just combined (no dry patches remain). Do not overmix the dough.
  • Fold in the maraschino cherries (patted dry) and chopped pistachios until evenly distributed – no longer than 30 seconds to 1 minute to avoid overmixing the flour.
  • Divide the dough in half and form two logs approximately 13 inches long, 2 inches wide and 1 inch thick. Place logs on the prepared baking sheet.
  • Bake for 40 minutes and remove. Let cool completely, Once cool, slice into 1 inch thick strips and place back on the baking sheet, cut side down.
  • Change oven temperature to 300°F. 
  • Bake the cut biscotti for an additional 15-20 minutes or until golden brown, flipping half way.
  • Let cookies cool for 10 minutes on the baking sheet before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.

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