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Whip up a batch of these whole wheat biscotti with dark chocolate and cherries for your next holiday coffee break. They are more than happy to be dunked!

The holidays are here, and that means cookies galore and activities that involve dressing like the Pillsbury Doughboy. We did both this past weekend. The cookies involved a whole wheat version of biscotti, studded with dark chocolate and cherries. I know, I know...that's why you're really here, isn't it?

For the winter activity, we all brought out our inner Wayne Gretzkys and donned some ice skates. I documented the comical event (let's just say that the boys' jeans were soaking wet by the time we finished) on my Instagram and Facebook accounts for all to see.

"I'm going to whip some "Canadian" into these boys yet!" #winterfun

"What you can't see is that we're all holding each other up, trying not to do the Bambi/splayed leg move."

And while I was inside whipping up a big batch of biscotti, my husband took advantage of one of our last "warm" days to put up the Christmas lights.

"It's that time of year that I grit my teeth until he gets down safely."

Now, let's talk cookies. I spotted a recipe for whole wheat biscotti on the Cooking Light site and decided to create my own version. First of all, dark chocolate and cherries seem like a holiday season "natural". The original recipe called for granulated and brown sugars, but I replaced both of them with agave nectar. Rather than regular whole wheat flour, I used whole wheat pastry flour, which provides a finer texture and takes away some of the fiber-full taste.

One of the trademarks of biscotti is that they are baked twice. The first round happens when the dough is formed into logs. Once the dough cools, it is cut on the diagonal, then baked again to form the crisp, distinctive texture.

Are these exactly like regular biscotti? Nope. But they are darn good, and they soften and dissolve slightly when dipped into a cafe latte just like the original version.

And, oh yeah, each one has only 69 calories. That sounds like a Christmas tradition in the making to me!

The recipe:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the whole wheat pastry flour, ground flax seed, ground ginger and salt.

In the bowl of a stand mixer (or a large bowl with a hand mixer), combine the agave, egg whites, egg and vanilla extract. Beat until combined.

With the mixer on low, gradually add the flour mixture until just combined. Stir in the chocolate chips and dried cherries.

With flour on your hands, divide the dough into three even pieces, and form each one into a 6-inch log.

Transfer the logs of cookie dough to the prepared baking sheet and continue to form until the logs are 6 inches long, 2 ½ inches in width and about 1 inch high.

Bake until the logs are firm, 25 to 27 minutes. The logs will puff up. Transfer the logs to a wire rack. Cool for 15 minutes.

Lower the oven heat to 325 degrees F.

Cut each log on the diagonal into ½-inch pieces. Be sure that the pieces are not too thick; otherwise, they won't bake properly.

Lay the biscotti, one of the cut sides down, on the baking sheet (you made need to do this in two batches). Bake for 8 minutes. Flip the biscotti and bake for 7 to 8 minutes, or until the biscotti are starting to brown.

Transfer to a wire rack and let cool. The centers will harden as the cookies cool.

Serve or store in an airtight container.

Other holiday dessert recipes:

Nutella & Sea Salt Stuffed Sugar Cookies
Chocolate Marshmallow Pops Three Ways: Candy Cane, Heath Bar & Coconut
Meringue Cookies Recipe (Peppermint & Chocolate)

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