Double Chocolate Mint Cookie

Pin It

 

Most people I know would say that these cookies taste like Christmas. That’s because of the peppermint flavour, which is associated with the Holiday Season. I don’t really understand that association since I never heard anyone say that After Eight tastes like a Holiday candy, for example. I find that peppermint and chocolate is a match to be enjoyed anytime of the year.

These cookies are meant to stay soft inside, so keep an eye on them towards the final minutes of baking to make sure they don’t overcook. I think they go very nicely with a cup of black coffee.         

 

Double Chocolate Mint Cookie Recipe

makes about 36 small cookies

 

You will need:

1 cup all-purpose flour

1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon cocoa powder

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

7 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature

1/4 cup white sugar

1/4 cup brown sugar

1 egg, room temperature

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/4 teaspoon peppermint extract

4 tablespoons sour cream

3/4 cup mint chocolate chips

1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips

 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Sift together flour, salt and baking soda over a bowl and set aside.

Beat butter and both sugars until it is light in colour and texture. Scrape the sides of the bowl and beat one more time. Reduce speed and mix in egg, vanilla and mint extracts until there is no trace of eggs and the mixture look smooth.

Add a third of the dry ingredients, then half of the sour cream. Stop the mixer, scrape the sides of bowl. Add another third of the dry ingredients, the sour cream and then the remaining dry ingredients.

Mix in the chocolate chips by hand.

Scoop the batter onto three baking sheets lined with parchment paper and bake it for 13 minutes.

Enjoy it!

Raspberry Oatmeal Squares

Pin It

This is a simple treat I make quite often since the ingredients are all staples here at home. Raspberry is the most common flavour I make, but you can use your favourite jam. I even thought about making this with Nutella or dulce de letche. I bet it would be wonderful... If anyone decides to give it a try, I would love to know how it turned out! If you take your jam straight out of the fridge, it might be a little too hard to spread. A quick 5 seconds in the microwave should take care of that.

These oatmeal squares are best eaten the day they are baked, but they will keep well in an airtight container for a couple of days. They go very nicely with a cup of tea, perfect on a lazy afternoon.

 

Raspberry Oatmeal Squares Recipe:

makes about 25 squares

You will need:

1/2 cup of all-purpose flour

2 cups of rolled oats

1 cup of brown sugar

1 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon

2 sticks (1 cup) of cold butter

1 1/2 cup of raspberry jam

 

Preheat oven to 325 F. Butter a square 9 inch baking pan.

In a food processor, blend the flour, oats, brown sugar and cinnamon. Cut the butter into pieces, add to the food processor and pulse a few times until large crumbs form. Divide the dough in half.

Press one half of the dough into the prepared pan, covering the bottom and a little bit up the sides (about an inch).

Spread the jam over the dough evenly and cover it with the other half of the oatmeal dough by just sprinkling it overtop (do not press it).

Bake in the preheated oven f0r 55 minutes. Let it cool before cutting the squares.

 

Milano Cookies - Daring Bakers

Pin It

 

The July Daring Bakers' challenge was hosted by Nicole at Sweet Tooth. She chose Chocolate Covered Marshmallow Cookies and Milan Cookies from pastry chef Gale Gand of the Food Network.

We were given a choice of making both cookies or only one of them. I chose to make the Milano cookies because I am not  a big marshmallow fan. The cookies were very easy to make and the dough reminded me of my first Daring Bakers challenge, the Tuiles. Remember them? This time the dough was piped and had a much thicker consistency. The filling of the cookies was as simple as a chocolate ganache can be, with the addition of some orange zest.

The recipe is pretty straight forward and I did not make much changes to it. I did, however, omit the lemon extract (didn't have any), and halved the entire recipe. I ended up with about 16 cookies. If you would like to see more  Milano cookies or the chocolate covered marshmallow cookies, head over to the Daring Bakers site and have fun!

This is the original recipe given to us. I halved all ingredients (using 3 egg whites) and omitted the lemon extract.

Milan Cookies
Recipe courtesy Gale Gand, from Food Network website

 

Prep Time: 20 min
Inactive Prep Time: 0 min
Cook Time: 1 hr 0 min
Serves: about 3 dozen cookies

 

• 12 tablespoons (170grams/ 6 oz) unsalted butter, softened
• 2 1/2 cups (312.5 grams/ 11.02 oz) powdered sugar
• 7/8 cup egg whites (from about 6 eggs)
• 2 tablespoons vanilla extract
• 2 tablespoons lemon extract
• 1 1/2 cups (187.5grams/ 6.61 oz) all purpose flour
• Cookie filling, recipe follows

Cookie filling:
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 8 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped
• 1 orange, zested

1. In a mixer with paddle attachment cream the butter and the sugar.
2. Add the egg whites gradually and then mix in the vanilla and lemon extracts.
3. Add the flour and mix until just well mixed.
4. With a small (1/4-inch) plain tip, pipe 1-inch sections of batter onto a parchment-lined sheet pan, spacing them 2 inches apart as they spread.
5. Bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for 10 minutes or until light golden brown around the edges. Let cool on the pan.
6. While waiting for the cookies to cool, in a small saucepan over medium flame, scald cream.
7. Pour hot cream over chocolate in a bowl, whisk to melt chocolate, add zest and blend well.
8. Set aside to cool (the mixture will thicken as it cools).
9. Spread a thin amount of the filling onto the flat side of a cookie while the filling is still soft and press the flat side of a second cookie on top.
10. Repeat with the remainder of the cookies.

Classic Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

Pin It

 

This cookies are really easy to make, as most cookies are. At least the ones I choose to make.  They are thin cookies, which means you can have two, or three...:)  The raisins are soft and make a nice balance with the crispy oats. These cookies filled my kitchen with a great cinnamon aroma.

When baking these cookies, make sure to separate them well apart on the baking sheets as they spread a lot.  I made three cookie sheets using two at the time. If you need to reuse the same cookie sheet (like I did) make sure it is completely cooled before placing the dough on it, or it will affect the cooking time. Running the cookie sheets or trays under cold water will speed up the cooling time.

 

Oatmeal Raisin Cookie Recipe:

makes about 25 cookies

You will need:

1 3/4 cups of rolled oats (not quick-cooking)

1/2 cup of all-purpose flour

3/4 cup of raisins

1/2 teaspoon of baking soda

1/4 teaspoon of salt

1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon

6 tablespoons of unsalted butter, room temperature

1/2 cup of  dark-brown sugar

1/4 cup of sugar

1 large egg

1 teaspoon of vanilla extract

 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line your cookie trays lined with parchment paper.

Whisk the flour, baking soda, salt and cinnamon until combined. Add the oats and stir well. Set aside.

Using an electric mixer beat sugars and butter until pale and creamy, scraping down the sides of the bowl once or twice. Slow down the mixer speed and add the egg and vanilla extract, mix until it is well incorporated. Add the flour mixture slowly, stopping to scrape the sides of the bowl when necessary. Add the raisins and mix it quickly, or stir it with a spatula.

Drop cookies by the spoon full onto cookie sheets, be sure to leave space between them as they spread a lot. Bake for about 10-12 minutes. Cool cookies completely on a wire rack and keep it in an airtight container.

Enjoy it!

 

Brazilian Peanut Candy Squares (Paçoca)

Pin It

This candy is as Brazilian as it gets. The original paçoca (Pa-SSO-ca) is made with peanuts, sugar and cassava flour and it is ground in a mortar. The name paçoca comes from a Brazilian Native Dialect (tupi-guarani) and it means "to crumble". That is because this candy crumbles down easily either in your hands or in your mouth.

This candy is found at just about any grocery store, street markets and school's cafeterias around Brazil. There are two types of paçoca. One that is drier and crumbles easily and normally comes in a cork shape. The other one is slightly denser, moister and it is normally shaped into squares. The last one was always my favourite and it's the one posted here.

There is an old tradition amongst Brazilian Christians of eating paçoca during lent or on Good Friday, since peanuts are naturally high in energy. My grandmother used to mashed them with bananas (for moisture) and eat it with a fork.

You can make this candy using salted peanuts too, it will lend a slightly salty bite to it, which is common in many Brazilian paçocas. If you just like it sweet, go ahead and make it just like I did, and you'll end up with a sweet, peanuty treat.

The best part: The whole thing comes together in minutes and there is no baking or cooking involved at all.

Brazilian Peanut Squares Recipe:

makes about 36 squares

You will need:

9 oz (250g) of roasted, skinless peanuts

1 1/2 packages of Maria Cookies **(see note bellow)

1 can of sweetened condensed milk

2 tablespoons of sugar

In the food processor, combine peanuts, cookies and pulse until it's well combined and even. It should resemble a coarse flour. Add the sugar and pulse. Add the condensed milk and process until it forms a ball of dough. Transfer to a 9 inch square baking dish lined with wax or parchment paper. Using your hands, press it very well to form an even layer. Let it rest for at least 15 minutes up to overnight. Remove from the baking dish and cut into squares. Keep it in airtight containers.

** Maria cookies are round, flat cookies found at the Ethnic aisle of most grocery stores near the Latin foods, or at Latin and sometimes Mediterranean food stores.

Easter treat bags.

Chocolate Almond Crunch

Pin It

 

I found the perfect sweet treat for a movie night. It's these little chocolate clusters. They are so crunchy and easy to eat, perfect after a bowl of popcorn while watching your favourite movie at home. What's fun about this recipe is what makes the chocolate balls crunchy: fried egg noodles. That's right, the type you use in soups and Chinese Lo Mein. Perhaps it's not a new idea, but for me it is. I saw it while flipping through a cookbook about noodles the other day at the local library. I don't remember the book name, neither the recipe itself, I just remember that it used fried egg noodles to add crunchiness to the chocolate.  And I loved the idea!

This is my attempt on recreating it. As I said, it feels perfect for movie night, but I am sure they would be a welcome snack at anytime of the day or occasion. The good thing is that once prepared, the chocolate crunches stay in the fridge and can be served anytime.

This sweet treat didn't take more than 15 minutes to make and it takes only about 10 minutes to chill in the fridge. How easy is that?

 

Chocolate Almond Crunch Recipe:

makes about 20 balls

 

You will need: (the measures on this recipe are pretty loose)

3 oz of egg noodles

oil for frying

10 oz of chocolate (any type you want to, I made some with white and some with milk chocolate)

1 teaspoon of vanilla extract

1 cup of golden raisins

1/2 cup of sliced almonds

 

Fry the noodles in hot oil (about 375 F) for 1 minute, be careful not to burn it. Transfer to a bowl, and let it cool. Once cooled, break it up with your hands.

Melt the chocolate using a double boiler, once melted,add vanilla and stir. Add the broken noodles, raisins and almonds. Mix well with a spoon or spatula until it is evenly incorporated.

Drop spoonfuls of the chocolate mixture into a baking sheet lined with wax paper. Chill in the fridge until set and ready to serve.

 

This is my entry for this month's Weekend Wokking, an event created by Wandering Chopsticks featuring a different secret ingredient every month. This month's host is Blazing Hot Wok and the secret ingredient is almond.

 

Walnut and Chocolate Chip Blondies

Pin It

 

We moved to Seattle in 2007 and I had only one afternoon to find us an apartment. It sounds like not enough time, but as soon as I entered our building (where we currently live), I knew this was it. There was nothing available at the time, but I liked it so much that we ended up signing a lease by mail a month later to a unit we had never even seen. It was one of the best decisions we made.

If you live in our building, not only you get to enjoy a roof top patio with incredible views of Puget Sound (and 2 barbeque grills available 24-7), but you are also invited to seasonal parties every 4 months. Brunch to celebrate Spring, wine and cheese during the winter, and of course the BIG July 4th BBQ party. Now they are also offering tenants a breakfast get together every first Saturday of each month. Is that great or what?

But the best part of living here is the people. Fellow tenants are great and so is our building manager and the maintenance staff. I like to bring them a little sweet treat every once in a while, it's a way to say thank you. That was the purpose of these blondies. I brought it downstairs in individual containers so they could take them home. I saved a few pieces for me, after all, it was my first time making blondies. They turned out really good! And really easy to make too. I loved the crunchiness from the walnuts and the buttery kind of flavour from the dough.

 

The recipe is  from marthastewart.com which is always a reliable source for all things cookie-related.

Walnut and Chocolate Chip Blondie Recipe:

makes 16 squares

 

1 stick of unsalted butter, melted (plus more for pan)

1/2 cup packed brown sugar

1/3 cup sugar

1 large egg

1 teaspoon of vanilla extract

1 cup of all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon  of salt

1 cup semisweet or milk chocolate chips

1 cup chopped walnuts

 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Prepare pan by buttering it first, than covering it with parchment paper. Leave a 2 inch overhang on each side for you to pull the cookie later on. Butter the parchment paper as well. Set aside.

Whisk butter and sugars until smooth, add the egg and vanilla and whisk some more. Add flour in two batches and salt, mixing it until it is all combined. Do not over mix it. Fold in half of the chocolate chips and walnuts.

Pour batter into prepared pan and top it with the remaining chocolate chips and walnut pieces.

Bake it for about 40 minutes, or until the toothpick test comes out clean.

Let it cool completely. Using the overhang paper, lift cake form pan and transfer it to a cutting board. Slice it into 16 even squares using a serrated knife.

Enjoy it!

 

 

Tuiles - My First Daring Bakers Challenge

Pin It

When I joined the Daring Bakers last month I was really nervous thinking about what would be my first challenge. I was happy to find out that the January challenge (my first one) was Tuile. Tuile is a French cookie that is quickly baked and while warm they are flexible and can be shaped anyway you like. Well, maybe not anyway, but there are many options.

This month's challenge is brought to us by Karen of Bake My Day and Zorra of 1x umruehren bitte aka Kochtopf. They have chosen Tuiles from The Chocolate Book by Angélique Schmeink and Nougatine and Chocolate Tuiles from Michel Roux. We were given a few options of batter to choose from and had the freedom to bend it and shape it anyway we wanted to.

I chose the sweet, vanilla-flavoured batter. Being my first challenge, I wanted to play safe...

Originally I was going to bake a mousse to go together with my tuiles but after tasting the first batches I thought they made perfect tea cookies. They are light, not too sweet and if made right they have a nice crispiness that goes perfect with a cup of tea in the afternoon. They reminded me of something I used to buy on the streets in Brazil as a child (beiju), only the brazilian ones were 10 times bigger. They were shaped as cones and we would hear the guy passing buy on the streets, kind of like the ice cream man.

I used a cut off cereal box to make a round stencil. To shape my tuiles I chose to use a wooden spoon handle. Immediately after the cookies came out of the oven they are released with a spatula and wrapped around the handles of the spoons. It worked very well (you have to work quickly though, as they set fast too). The most challenging part for me was to find the right amount of baking time that would make the tuiles crispy without burning. That is because they are so thin that they cook pretty fast and can burn around the edges. It took me a couple of times trying, and then it was ok.

Overall I think it was a great first challenge, I was already having nightmares about 4 tier cakes, homemade breads, delicate French pastries, complicated pastry creams and mousses... But the tuiles were just what I needed for my first challenge! It gives a little confidence boost to know I was able to make it without any major complications. I have a feeling I will need that confidence for next month's challenge... But that's for later.

Thank you Daring Bakers for allowing me to become part of this fun group and for al the help and support.

This is the recipe I used, it is adapted from the book “The Chocolate Book”, written by female Dutch Master chef Angélique Schmeinck.

65 grams / ¼ cup / 2.3 ounces softened butter (not melted but soft)
60 grams / ½ cup / 2.1 ounces sifted confectioner’s sugar
1 sachet vanilla sugar (7 grams or substitute with a dash of vanilla extract)
2 large egg whites (slightly whisked with a fork)
65 grams / 1/2 cup / 2.3 ounces sifted all purpose flour

Oven: 180C / 350F

Using a hand whisk or a stand mixer fitted with the paddle (low speed) and cream butter, sugar and vanilla to a paste. Keep stirring while you gradually add the egg whites. Continue to add the flour in small batches and stir to achieve a homogeneous and smooth batter/paste. Be careful to not over mix.
Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and chill in the fridge for at least 30 minutes to firm up. (This batter will keep in the fridge for up to a week, take it out 30 minutes before you plan to use it).

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or grease with either butter/spray and chill in the fridge for at least 15 minutes. This will help spread the batter more easily if using a stencil/cardboard template. Make the round shapes (I used a 4 inch round) and bake for about 5 to 6 minutes (the original recipe says anytime from 5 to 12 minutes), watch carefully during the last minute to avoid burning them.

Immediately after removing the cookie sheet from the oven, release cookies with an spatula and quickly wrap the around the handles of wooden spoons. Place spoons over a cooling rack and let cookies take shape. Carefully pull cookies away from the handles when they are cool and set.

Before proceeding with the next batch, make sure the cookie sheets are cold, I actually place them in the freezer for a minute or so and then carried on making the next round.

I had to have a few tries first to figure out the oven time and the thickness of the cookies. Once I knew all that, I probably got about a dozen cookies.

Gingerbread People - What is your profile?

Pin It

 

Business Men?

 

Cook's Apron?

 

Fashionista?

 

Romantic?

 

Not so much....

 

Expressive!

 

Hot Pink...

 

Oh, silly you :)

 

Christmas in Seattle

 

 

Christmas in Brazil

 

 

Oh Christmas Tree...

 

  

Gingerbread Cookies Recipe:

Recipe adapted from Everyday Food magazine

For the cookies:

3 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting

2 teaspoons ground ginger

1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

6 tablespoons unsalted butter at room temp.

1/2 cup brown sugar

1 large egg

3/4 cup molasses

 

For the icing:

2 cups confectioner's sugar

4 teaspoons powdered egg whites (meringue powder)

 

Whisk together the first 7 ingredients and set aside.

In the bowl of an electric mixer beat the butter and the brown sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in egg and molasses **(see tip on the bottom of recipe) . Turn mixer speed to low and add flour mixture a little at the time until it is all combined. It should have this look:

Divide dough in half and flatten into 2 discs. Wrap each disc in plastic and refrigerate it at least for 2 hours. 

 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cut out a piece of parchment paper and  sprinkle with flour. Dust your rolling pin with flour.

Working with one disk at a time, roll the dough out to 1/8 inch thick, adding flour whenever needed to stop it from sticking.  Bring rolled out dough to freezer for about 20 minutes (you can put the dough on baking sheets if you want).

Remove dough from freezer. Dip the cookie cutters in flour and cut out cookies. Transfer to a baking sheet. bake them for about 8 - 10 minutes for softer cookies, 11 - 12 minutes for crunchier ones.

Transfer cookies to a wire rack to cool completely before decorating.

 

To make the icing, simply mix the confectioner's sugar, the meringue powder and 1/4 cup of  water.  Decorate it using a piping bag or a plastic bag (make a cut in one of the corners).

 

** Molasses is pretty sticky and hard to pour. Try using the butter paper wrap to coat your measuring cup before adding the molasses. It will make it easier to pour it out.

Back from vacation...and new favourite cookies

Pin It

 

Hi everyone! I am back from two weeks in Brazil having fun, soaking up some sun and visiting family and friends. What's better than that? Home. That's right, even with gray skies, low temperatures and leafless trees, there is no place like home. Specially during the Holiday Season, we actually look forward to it here at home. Perhaps it is because in the past we didn't have many chances  to celebrate the Holidays at home.  Actually, we didn't even had a home until recently... (No, we were not homeless...we used to work/live aboard cruise ships for a long time).

I am working on a post about the trip with lots of photos! Stay tuned!

For now I will talk about those yummy cookies.  I baked them to give to our building manager who watered our plants while we were out. It was my way of thanking her.

It turned out that the cookies were really popular here at home. Andrew loved them so much he ate half of the recipe (about 20 cookies) in 2 days...

In his own words:

" This may be even better than my favourite ones".

In my thoughts:

WOOHOO!! Finally I can bake something else besides the old soft chocolate chip cookie....

These cookies combine coconut, white chocolate and walnuts. The result is a VERY sweet cookie that is also chewy with a chunky bite from the walnuts.

Oh, and did I mentioned cocoa in the dough??

The cookies tasted very nice, but I didn't think they were very attractive-looking. Many of them joined together in the oven, as they spread out, so I had to separate them  later. I think it is because I was supposed to use a 1 1/2 inch ice cream scoop (which I don't have) to measure them, but I just eye balled it. Next time I make them, I will size them properly and maybe they will turn out more even.

So I  guess my next little gadget will be a  1 1/2 inch ice cream scoop. And  it will happen soon, cause according to Andrew "it won't hurt to make those cookies again.... " Sure it  won't hon, specially now during the Holidays.

Happy Holiday Season Everyone!

 

Double Chocolate Coconut Cookies Recipe:

from marthastewart.com

You'll need:

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened

1/2 cup sugar

3/4 cup packed brown sugar

2 large eggs

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

2 cups white chocolate chips *

1 3/4 cups sweetened  flaked coconut

1 3/4 cups coarsely chopped walnuts

 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Cream butter and sugars together on medium speed for about 2 minutes (I use the paddle attachment on my Kitchen Aid). Lower the speed and add eggs (one at a time) and vanilla.

Sift flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder and salt into a bowl. Mix into butter mixture on low speed until just combined. do not over mix it. Stir in chocolate chips, coconut flakes and walnuts.

Drop batter onto parchment-lined baking sheets, spacing them well apart  as cookies will spread a lot. (The recipe suggested using a 1 1/2 inch ice cream scoop to measure the dough.  It probably helps a lot, although I didn't have one). Bake for about 12 minutes. Cool them on wire racks.

According to the original recipe, these cookies can be stored in airtight containers for up to a week. I cannot confirm that, since our cookies were gone in just 2 days...

Maple Syrup and Brazil nut cookies

Pin It The name of these cookies might be a little deceptive. The only Brazil nut in it is the one on top. Other than that it is a pretty simple cookie, but made with maple syrup instead of some of the sugar, which makes it healthier (if a cookie could actually be healthy...) But let's just say it's less bad for you! Brazil nuts are know for being a superfood. They are loaded with unsaturated fat, minerals, vitamin E and selenium. So we don't have to feel too bad when reaching for the cookie jar... Unfortunately I do not know the name of the book where I got this recipe from because I photocopied the page only and forgot to write down the name of the book....

Maple Syrup and Brazil nut cookies Recipe:

2 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
about a dozen of Brazil nuts, split in half lengthwise
1/2 cup butter (1 stick)
2/3 cup maple syrup
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 tsp salt

Melt butter, syrup and sugar over medium-low heat and let it cool.
Sift flour, baking powder and salt together.
Pour wet ingredients into the dry ones and mix well.
Cover bowl with plastic wrap and put it in the freezer for about 10 minutes. This will make it easier to shape the cookies later.
Make golf size balls with the dough, placing them 2 inches apart on a oiled-sprayed baking sheet.
Press one half Brazil nut into every cookie and bake it at 325 degrees for about 15 minutes, or until done. They will still be soft when you take them out of the oven, don't worry. I tried to bake it longer and they became a little too hard.

Skillet-Baked Chocolate Chip Cookie

Pin It
If you like cookies and milk, then imagine a "cookie slice" with ice cream. That is what you get from this recipe, a huge skillet-size cookie that is sliced and served warm with some vanilla ice cream.
The recipe is as easy as a regular chocolate chip cookie, with the advantage that you don't need to make individual ones. Instead, the entire dough is spread onto a skillet.


Skillet-Baked Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe
from here

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup sugar
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 large egg
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups (about 9 ounces) mixed milk- and semisweet chocolate chips

vanilla ice cream for serving

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, and salt; set aside. Cream butter and sugars until mixture is light and fluffy. Add egg and vanilla; mix until they are fully incorporated. Add flour mixture, and beat until just combined. Stir in chocolate chips

Transfer dough to a 10-inch ovenproof skillet, and press to flatten, covering bottom of pan. Bake until edges are brown and top is golden, 40 to 45 minutes. Don't over bake; it will continue to cook a few minutes out of the oven. Transfer to a wire rack to cool, 15 to 20 minutes. Slice and serve with ice cream.

Black Forest Cookies

Pin It

There is nothing nicer and more comforting than the smell of fresh cookies baking in the oven. This is the cookie version of the popular Black Forest cake. The dough has cocoa in it, which gives them the dark colour. To complete the black forest theme, dry cherries are added to the dough along with lots of chocolate chunks.



The trick for making these cookies successfully is not to over bake them. It did take more than the 11-13 minutes that the original recipe suggests to bake them but I was checking after each minute to make sure they didn't get too hard. Nothing is worse than an over baked cookie.

Black Forrest Cookie Recipe
adapted from here

makes about 3 dozen cookies

1 cup all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
8 oz semisweet chocolate, chopped
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
2 large eggs at room temperature
1 package (about 12 oz) semisweet chocolate chunks or chips
1 1/2 cups dried cherries

Whisk together flour, cocoa, baking powder and salt; set aside.

Melt chocolate and butter in a double boiler, stirring until smooth. Remove from heat, mix in sugar, brown sugar, eggs, and whisk until smooth.

Whisk in the flour mixture just until combined (do not over mix). Fold in chocolate chunks and dried cherries; press plastic wrap directly onto surface of dough, and refrigerate until firm, 30 to 45 minutes.

In the meantime, preheat oven to 350 degrees F and line 2 or 3 cookie sheets with parchment paper.

Drop mounds of dough (equal to 2 level tablespoons) about 2 inches apart onto cookie sheets. Bake just until edges are firm (but not darkening), 11 to 13 minutes or until set. Cool on baking sheets 1 to 2 minutes; transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.