Cranberry Pistachio Biscotti

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Crunchy cranberry pistachio biscotti is easy to make at home, and perfect for dipping into your favorite coffee or tea. Package for gifting or keep it all to yourself.

For years now my family has been doing a little cookie competition to kick off December. It began with just us, but now our friends compete too! It’s fun seeing how competitive everyone gets, and of course we all get to swap lots of cookies.

It’s always hard for me to decide what cookie to bring to the competition, so I tend to make a few different ones leading up to the day. This year I wanted to keep the cranberry vibes from Thanksgiving going, so I made a batch of cranberry pistachio biscotti.

If you’ve never made biscotti before, you might be surprised how easy it is! While biscotti does take some time in the oven, the batter comes together quickly.

Homemade biscotti is always a delicious treat, and the addition of cranberries and pistachios gives it a special holiday flair. Of course, there’s nothing stopping you from making this classic year round!

Ingredients for cranberry pistachio biscotti

Full list of ingredients including quantities is located in the recipe card.

You’ll need:

• Eggs
• Granulated sugar
• Vanilla extract (or paste)
• All-purpose flour
• Baking powder
• Salt
• Dried cranberries
• Unsalted pistachios

Dried fruit works best for biscotti, because the cookie batter is already very wet. Don’t swap in fresh or frozen cranberries here!

It can be hard to find unsalted pistachios depending on where you live. if you can only find salted pistachios, you’ll want to omit the added salt in this recipe. I also recommend rubbing the pistachios in a tea towel or paper towel to remove some of the salt.

Note that in some stores pistachios are found in the produce section, not with the nuts!

How to make this recipe

Preheat the oven to 300°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper or a silicone baking liner. Don’t skip lining the pans, or your biscotti will stick!

In a large bowl, beat together the eggs and granulated sugar for 2 minutes. Mix in the vanilla extract.

In another bowl, mix together flour, baking powder, and salt (if using). Stir into the egg mixture, making sure to scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl to mix fully.

Stir in the cranberries and pistachios.

You’ll notice this cookie dough is more like a batter than a drop cookie dough. It should be fairly wet and sticky.

Scoop half the dough batter onto the middle of one of the baking sheets and carefully shape into a rectangle or skinny log, depending on how big you want your biscotti to be. A silicone spatula lightly coated with cooking spray can help shape the dough. Repeat with the remaining dough on the other cookie sheet.

Place in the oven and bake for 50 to 60 minutes, rotating the pans halfway through baking time. The biscotti should be set and golden.

Let it cool a few minutes, then peel off the parchment and set on a cutting board. Using a serrated knife, cut the biscotti from the short end into slices about 1 inch thick.

Set the slices cut-side down back onto the baking sheets. Bake again for 20-30 minutes, flipping the cookies halfway through.

Let cool completely before storing.

Recipe tips

The dough is meant to be wet, so don’t be tempted to add a lot of extra flour! If you do want to add more, only add a tablespoon at a time, and just enough to make the dough easier to divide and shape. It should not be stiff.

Baking the biscotti at a lower temperature for a longer period of time ensures the right texture throughout the cookie. Increasing the temperature can burn the outsides before the inside is properly baked.

I prefer to leave these cranberry pistachio biscotti unadorned for dipping into my afternoon coffee, but you can make them more festive with the addition of melted white chocolate, almond bark, or candy melts. Dip in one end, the entire bottom, or drizzle on!

Orange zest is a great addition to these cookies as well. Mix it into the sugar before adding the eggs to bring out the fragrance.

virtual Cookie swap

This recipe is part of The Sweetest Season, an annual virtual cookie swap co-hosted by Erin of The Speckled Palate and Susannah of Feast + West. Every year, food bloggers get together to share new holiday cookie recipes to make and give.

This year we are raising money for Cookies 4 Kids’ Cancer, which is a recognized 501(c)3 non-profit organization dedicated to funding research for new, innovative and less-toxic treatments for childhood cancer.

Since 2008, Cookies for Kids’ Cancer has granted nearly $18 million to pediatric cancer research in the form of 100+ research grants to leading pediatric cancer centers across the country. From these grants have stemmed 35+ treatments available to kids battling cancer today.

Help us raise money for this important cause! Donate through our fundraising page.

Another exciting thing is that Cookies for Kids’ Cancer is in a matching window with their friends at OXO, meaning OXO will be matching every dollar raised through the end of 2024, up to $100,000. Whatever money we raise will automatically double on our fundraising page!

Make these as part of a gift basket along with pomegranate biscotti and almond biscotti. It’s a delicious way to celebrate!