Chocolate Chunk Biscotti

From our favorite, never-fail cookie book, Cookies Unlimited by Nick Malgieri. I made these delicious, chocolate packed cookies yesterday to freeze for Christmas.

These are a snap except for one bit ... when you are mixing the egg mixture with the flour mixture about halfway through you begin to think that you will never be able to do it. There really is very little liquid to mix in, but if you keep working at it all the ingredients gradually become incorporated.

Also, I know the different chocolates are "added for a subtle richness" but ... since I am lazy and don't care about those subtleties ... I use a 12-ounce bag of semi-sweet chocolate chips. And they are still quite delicious.

Makes about 60 biscotti
(I have never gotten more than 40)

1-3/4 cups flour
2/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder, sifted after measuring
2 teaspoons baking powder
Pinch salt
1-1/4 sugar
6 ounces bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, cut into 1/4-inch pieces
6 ounces milk chocolate, cut into 1/4-inch pieces
4 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 cookie sheets or jelly roll covered with parchment or foil

Set a rack at the middle level of the oven and preheat to 325 degrees.

In a bowl, combine the flour, cocoa, baking powder, and salt; stir well to mix. Stir in the sugar and chocolates.

In another bowl, whisk together the eggs and vanilla and using a large rubber spatula stir the eggs into the flour mixture to form a dough.

On a lightly floured surface, press the dough together -- it will be sticky. Flour your hands and the surface lightly, but do not add any more flour to the dough. Divide the dough in half and roll each half into a log the length of your pan (14 to 18 inches). Place the logs on a pan, making sure they are not too close to each other or to the sides of the pan. Press down gently with the palm of your hand to flatten the logs. (Use a dry brush to remove excess flour if necessary.) Bake for about 30 minutes until they are well risen and have also spread to about double in size. The logs are done when, pressed with a fingertip, they feel firm. Cool the logs on the pan.

Reset the racks in the upper and lower thirds of the oven. Using a sharp serrated knife, slice the baked logs diagonally about every 1/4 to 1/2 inch. Return the biscotti to the pans, cut side down, and bake up to 20 minutes longer, or until the biscotti are dry and crisp.

Cool on a rack.

Store the cooled biscotti between sheets of parchment or wax paper in a tin or plastic container with a tight fitting cover.