Orange-Chocolate Chip Biscotti

This is yet another wonderful, fabulous, delightful recipe from Alice Medrich ("Cookies and Brownies"). It took me a lot of work to track down this cookbook, which is out of print -- everything I've made from it has been first-rate. They need to bring this back into print!

• Ready In: 2 hrs
• Serves: 45

Ingredients

• 1 2⁄3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1⁄2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1⁄4 teaspoon salt
• 2  large eggs
• 3⁄4 cup sugar
• 1  teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1⁄4 teaspoon  orange extract
• 2⁄3 orange, zest of
• 2  tablespoons  orange juice (fresh only!)
• 1  cup  semi-sweet chocolate chips

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 300. Position rack in the middle of oven.
2. Combine flour, baking soda, and salt; mix thoroughly with fork.
3. Whisk together the eggs, sugar, vanilla and orange extracts, and orange zest in a medium bowl.
4. Mix in the orange juice.
5. Using a rubber spatula, stir in dry ingredients until just combined.
6. Stir in chocolate chips.
7. The batter will be thick and sticky (typical biscotti batter). Scrape the batter onto a baking sheet. (I cover my baking sheet with aluminum foil, then spray it with baking spray.) Using two spatulas, divide batter into two loaves, about 14" long and about 2.5" wide. Try to put at least 2.5" between the loaves; straighten the edges of the loaves with spatulas.
8. Bake for 35 minutes, or until firm but springy when pressed with fingers.
9. Cool for ten minutes in the pan. Then move loaves to a cutting board, and with a sharp knife (serrated is best), slice loaves on teh diagonal in 1/2" slices.
10. Lay the biscotti on the baking sheet, cut side down, and bake for another 12 minutes.
11. Take the biscotti out of the oven, turn them over, and bake another 12-15 minutes, or until golden brown.
12. Note: If you don't want the biscotti to pick up a darker color, handle the second baking this way: Rather than laying the slices cut-side down, stand them upright, and bake them for a total of 24-30 minutes.
13. Remove the biscotti from the oven and cool on a cooling rack.
14. Medrich notes that the flavor will become stronger, and the biscotti will become more tender, after being stored for 2-3 days in an airtight container.