The fruit and nut combination of dried cranberries and pistachios is often chosen for its Christmas colors. But it’s also the duo’s complementary flavors and textures-the cranberries add a chewy, sweet-tartness and the pistachios are rich and buttery tasting-that really entice.

Ingredients

• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• 8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened  
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1/3 cup light brown sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 1½ teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• 1 tablespoon finely grated orange zest (from 1 orange)  
• 1¼ cups shelled unsalted pistachios
• 1 cup dried cranberries 

Preparation

1 Pre-heat the oven to 350°F. Line a large cookie or baking sheet with parchment paper.

2 Whisk together the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt in a medium bowl.

3 Using an electric mixer, beat the butter in a large bowl until creamy. Add the granulated and brown sugars and beat until fully blended.  Beat in the eggs, then the vanilla and orange zest. With the beaters on low speed, mix in the flour mixture just until the dough starts to clump together. Mix in the pistachios and cranberries. Using your hands or a rubber spatula, gather the dough into a ball, and then divide it in half.

4 With lightly floured hands, place each half of the dough lengthwise on one side of the prepared sheet. Shape the dough into rectangular loaves about 13 inches long and 2½ inches wide. Make sure the loaves are at least 3 inches apart on the sheet.

5 Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, rotating the sheet from front to back about halfway through baking, or until the loaves are nicely golden and the tops feel mostly firm when gently pressed. Transfer the sheet to a rack to cool for 10 minutes. Reduce the oven temperature to 325°F.

6 Peel the loaves off the parchment paper and transfer them, one at a time, to a cutting board. Using a serrated knife in a long sawing motion, cut the loaves on a slight diagonal into ¾-inch-thick slices.  Discard the parchment and place the biscotti, cut side down, on the sheet. Bake for 10 minutes. Turn the biscotti over to the other cut side and bake for about 10 minutes longer or until lightly toasted. Transfer the biscotti to a rack to cool. 

7 Store in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks; or freeze for up to  2 months. (You can perk up the biscotti by toasting them in a 350°F oven for about 5 minutes.)

Makes about 34 biscotti

From Christmas Cookies: 50 Recipes to Treasure for the Holiday Season. Published by HarperCollins Publishers Ltd.  Copyright © 2008 by Lisa B. Zwirn. All rights reserved.  Reprinted by permission of HarperCollins Publishers Ltd.