Biscotti have got to be right up there these days with doughnuts as a preferred item for dunking in coffee. Biscotti are readily available in the store, of course, but I also found they were a good deal easier to make than I imagined. I began my biscotti-making effort by turning to my neighbor Melissa Olson, who told me a long time ago that she had a great recipe for chocolate biscotti. So last week I called her up and asked her to share it.

At first, Melissa said, “Oh, it is the one in ‘The Joy of Cooking,’ so you can just use that.” I said I didn’t have the recent version of “Joy” so she got out her copy of the cookbook, and started to tell me the recipe. As she went down the ingredient list, she would say, “but I don’t do that,” or “I do this or that instead.”

By the time we were done, it was apparent that Melissa, like many of us, I suspect, let the recipe be a set of suggestions that we adjust and adapt to suit our personal taste or what our families prefer. The recipe I ended up with is substantially different from the one in the book. But Melissa didn’t claim authorship so I will to do that for her.

This dough expands considerably, so give it plenty of room, and bear in mind when you cut it into the individual slices, you may need an extra baking sheet to hold them all. Even though I have put a number on the yield, be aware that you can cut them more narrowly, or even divide the loaf lengthwise and then cut the slices, effectively doubling the number. It really all depends on your preferences. These have a deep chocolaty flavor. They taste even better when you don’t scorch the bottoms – and never mind how I know that.

Melissa’s Double Chocolate Biscotti

Yields 16-20 pieces.

3 cups flour

1/4 cup cocoa

2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 cup butter (one stick)

1 cup sugar

3 eggs

1 1/2 tablespoons corn syrup

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 teaspoon almond extract

6 ounces semi-sweet chocolate chips

1 1/3 cups blanched and toasted chopped almonds (optional)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and grease a baking sheet. Sift together the flour, cocoa and baking powder and set aside. Cream together the butter and sugar and beat until fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, beating after each addition. Add the corn syrup and extracts and beat; then gradually beat the flour into the wet ingredients. Fold in the chocolate chips and nuts.

Place the dough on the baking sheet and shape into a flat loaf, allowing plenty of room for it to expand. Square up the ends so most slices will be an even length. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes. Take it out of the oven, and slice it into 3/4- to 1-inch-wide slices and separate them, then bake again for another 15 minutes. Cool before putting away.