This Delish pumpkin spice biscotti recipe produces 20 twice-baked biscuits that lean softer than the Italian original, thanks to pumpkin puree working moisture into the dough. Total time from prep to cooling runs one hour and thirty minutes, with just ten minutes of hands-on work.
The pairing logic is straightforward: pumpkin spice and coffee are natural allies in autumn, and biscotti (dry enough to hold their structure but not so brittle they shatter at first dip) are designed for dunking. A cup of hot chocolate or a pumpkin spice latte works just as well as a standard espresso or filter coffee alongside these.
What Makes This Pumpkin Spice Biscotti Recipe Different
Traditional biscotti dough is made without fat beyond eggs, which gives the finished biscuit its characteristic hardness. Here, three-quarters of a cup (180g) of pumpkin puree takes the place of added butter or oil, lending enough moisture that the centres retain a slight give rather than going fully crisp. A quarter-cup (45g) of mini chocolate chips is folded in at the end, and a sprinkle of cinnamon sugar goes on before the first bake.
The dry mix is straightforward: two cups (240g) of all-purpose flour, one teaspoon of baking powder, one teaspoon of pumpkin spice, and half a teaspoon of kosher salt. The wet mix combines one large egg with the pumpkin puree, a quarter-cup (55g) of packed light brown sugar, and a quarter-cup (50g) of granulated sugar, whisked until smooth. Wet and dry are brought together with a rubber spatula until just a few dry streaks remain before the chips go in. The resulting dough is described as slightly sticky, which is expected and correct.
The Two-Bake Method, Step by Step
The dough is divided in half, each portion patted on a lined and greased baking sheet into a rectangle roughly ten inches long and two inches wide. The first bake runs 25 to 30 minutes at 350°F until the logs are lightly golden and firm to the touch. After a five-minute rest, they move to a cutting board where a serrated knife slices them into three-quarter-inch-thick pieces.
Those slices go back onto the baking sheets cut side down for the second bake, again 25 to 30 minutes, with a flip halfway through. The target: golden cut sides, dry centres, and just a slight bounce when the centre is pressed. Once that texture is achieved, they cool completely on the trays before storage.
The double-bake is what defines biscotti as a category. The first pass sets the structure; the second drives out residual moisture from the cut faces, producing the shelf stability that makes these practical for batch-baking.
Storage and Make-Ahead Value
The recipe’s most practical selling point is its storage life. Biscotti made to this method keep for around three weeks in an airtight container at room temperature, no refrigeration required. That makes a single bake session viable as a supply of breakfasts or afternoon snacks across much of the autumn season rather than a treat that needs to be eaten within days.
The recipe was developed with food styling by Makinze Gore and photography by Lucy Schaeffer. A batch of 20 pieces can be made in full and stored immediately, ready to be pulled out whenever a coffee break calls for something to go alongside it.