I have achieved biscotti perfection. A bold statement, I am aware. I would invite you to come over and taste for yourself, but there isn't any biscotti left. I'm sorry. If you have to blame someone, blame my fourteen year old brother. (This is a good strategy for a variety of problems.)

The cranberry-pistachio biscotti from last week was delicious and festive. But in my mind, one of the most classic autumn/winter flavors is pumpkin. And pumpkin + baked goods = good for you! This is what I tell myself; do not try to dissuade me.

Recipe for Pumpkin Biscotti (Adapted from Dessert for Two)
Makes about 24 cookies.
Ingredients:
2 large eggs
1 cup sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 cup pumpkin puree
1/4 cup olive oil
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
pinch of ginger
pinch of cloves
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tbsp vanilla
2-1/2 cups flour
1/4 cup + 2 tbsp pepitas (pumpkin seeds)
1 12-oz. bag white chocolate chips (I used Ghiradelli--it really never disappoints.)

Instructions:
Preheat the oven to 350 and line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

In a medium bowl, beat eggs, sugar and baking powder vigorously with a whisk for about two to three minutes.

Add pumpkin puree, olive oil, spices, and vanilla. Whisk vigorously again.

Sprinkle flour on top and mix in with a spatula. Fold in the pepitas.

With wet fingers, divide the dough in half and shape it into two flat logs, one on each prepared baking sheet. Bake for about 35 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.

Remove from oven and let rest for at least 15 minutes. Cut into half-inch slices and bake for another 30 minutes at 300 degrees, flipping the slices over halfway through.

Cool completely. Melt white chocolate in 15-second bursts in the microwave, stirring after each time. Dip one side of the biscotti in the chocolate; for a festive addition, dip again into colored sprinkles.

Welcome to my two-part holiday post on biscotti.

When it comes to cookies, biscotti ranks pretty low in my book, somewhere between vanilla wafers and those bizarre bacon-flavored cookies that are so popular in the foodie world right now. When I think about a store-bought (or more commonly Starbucks-bought) piece of biscotti, I think dry, jawbreaker-style cookie with the texture of sandpaper. Having become an occasional coffee drinker over the past few years, I can better understand their appeal with a nice espresso or latté, but not enough to really want to crunch into one in place of a piece of pumpkin bread or cranberry bar.

Now that I've completely turned you off of ever eating one of these things again, let me reign you back in. Here's the secret: Homemade biscotti is a totally different breed of cookie. It has just the right crunch without being too tough, and is anything but dry. Plus, you can decide what you want in it and control (read: go out of control with) the amount of chocolate drizzle or dip being used.

And the holiday bonus: Biscotti is a perfect gift! Wrap a few pieces up in a plastic cellophane bag, tie a pretty bow on it, and pair it with a nice bag of coffee for an excellent, affordable present.

Cranberry-Pistachio Biscotti with White Chocolate
Adapted from Diamonds for Dessert

Ingredients:
1/4 cup olive oil
3/4 cup sugar
2 tsp vanilla extract
2 eggs
1-3/4 cups flour
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 cup dried cranberries
1 cup pistachios
6 oz. white chocolate chips

Instructions:
Preheat oven to 300 degrees F. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.

In a large bowl, combine olive oil and sugar. Add vanilla and eggs. In a separate bowl, mix together dry ingredients. Add dry ingredients into wet and stir until no streaks of flour remain. Fold in cranberries and pistachios.

With wet hands, divide dough into two equal portions and form into logs roughly the length of the cookie sheet. Bake for 35 minutes. Remove from oven and cool for 10 minutes.

Lower oven temperature to 275 degrees F. With a serrated knife, the logs into half-inch slices. Toast in the oven for 8-10 minutes, flipping once. Cool completely.

In a shallow bowl, melt white chocolate in the microwave in 15-second intervals, stirring well after each one. Be very careful not to scorch the chocolate. Dip one side of the cooled slices in the chocolate.

These shortcakes are a holiday winner! They even won my dad and brother over on cranberries, which is a *big deal.*

And don't judge my whipped-cream-to-shortcake ratio. It was delicious and I have no regrets.

Tonight, I combined my tried-and-true recipe for the actual shortcakes, which I made twice this past summer, with a new recipe I found in a magazine for the filling. The original recipe calls for honey in the cakes, the strawberries (it's technically a summer dish), and the whipped cream, but I was concerned that the honey wouldn't pair as well with cranberries as just plain old cane sugar does, so I went easy on it in the cranberry sauce, used regular powdered sugar in the whipped cream, but still put the honey in the biscuits.

The dessert may sound a little complicated, but it comes together easily. I made everything this afternoon, and then just reheated the shortcakes in the oven at 200 degrees F for five minutes and warmed the sauce back up on the stove when we were ready for dessert.

Recipe for Cranberry-Pear Shortcakes with Whipped Cream

Ingredients (For the Cranberry-Pear Sauce):
1 12-oz. bag fresh cranberries
2 ripe pears, peeled, chopped, and finely chopped
1/2 cup water (plus more if needed)
1/3 cup sugar

Instructions:
Combine all ingredients in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Bring to a boil, stirring frequently. Turn heat down to medium-low and simmer, stirring often, until mixture thickens and forms a syrup. The original recipe says this will take about five minutes, but it took me more like fifteen. I have a tendency to have things on lower rather than higher heat, because I have a bizarre (unfounded) fear of burning things.

Ingredients (For the Shortcakes and Whipped Cream):
1-3/4 cups whole wheat pastry flour
3/4 cup whole wheat flour
2 tsp baking powder
3/4 tsp sea salt
2/3 cup cold buttermilk
8 tbsp butter, melted and cooled
1 egg
3 tbsp honey
3/4 cup whipping cream
3 tbsp powdered sugar, or to taste

Preheat oven to 475 degrees, and make sure oven rack is in the middle position. In a large bowl, combine flours, baking powder, and sea salt; stir with a whisk to combine. In a medium bowl, whisk together buttermilk, butter, egg, and honey; stir well to combine. Add wet ingredients into dry, and fold together using a rubber spatula. The mixture will be quite thick.

Depending on how many people you are serving, scoop biscuits out by the 1/4-cup or 1/3-cup and place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. The original recipe says it makes six servings, but the biscuits are pretty big in that case. I made nine this time, which made the perfect size serving for after a celebratory steak dinner! (My fourteen year old brother came in second place today in a big tennis tournament for sixteen-and-under players.)

Bake for 12 to 15 minutes, watching closely to see that the tops are just golden. Be careful, because the bottoms will burn quickly if they are left in too long.

For the whipped cream, combine cream and powdered sugar in a large mixing bowl. Beat on medium speed until soft peaks form.

I forbid you to use store-bought whipped cream in a spray can. That is not real whipped cream and would be doing this fabulous

Serve and enjoy!

I love this dessert because it looks really elegant but doesn't take too much time to prepare.